Global Markets Treading Water in Midweek Trading

Voice of America
21 May 2020, 09:05 GMT+10

Investors expressed renewed optimism Wednesday as they moved past a disappointing report on the efficacy of a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by Moderna.

Major U.S. market indexes posted gains at the closing bell Wednesday.

Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.52%, or 369 points, to close at 24,575.90. The Nasdaq did even better with 2.08%, or 190 points, up and closing at 9,375.90. S&P 500 gained more than 48 points, or 1.67%, ending the day at 2,971.61.

European markets also turned up Wednesday, reflecting mild optimism as the continent reopens for business and the pandemic is on a downward trajectory.

London's FTSE index was 1.08% higher and Frankfurt's DAX index was up 1.34%, while the CAC-40 in Paris closed 0.87% higher.

Most Asian markets ended their trading sessions higher Wednesday, although with smaller gains. The Nikkei finished almost 0.8% higher to lead the region, while Hong Kong was almost flat and Shanghai finished 0.5% lower.

Global markets had soared at the beginning of the week after U.S.-based biotechnology company Moderna announced that initial tests for a possible coronavirus vaccine produced favorable results from a small sample of people.

The markets floundered Tuesday when a report on the medical news site Stat said there was not enough data to assess the vaccine's potential effectiveness. The Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all finished Tuesday trading sessions with losses, as did most European markets.

The price of U.S. crude oil was slightly up with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) selling at $33.54 per barrel, up 0.7%, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, was almost $36 per barrel.

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