Wall Street hits fresh highs as bull run continues apace
Wall Street once again closed at record highs this evening as stocks soared on optimism over a potential new treatment for the coronavirus disease.
Having last week reclaimed February’s pre-pandemic highs, neither the benchmark S&P 500 nor the Nasdaq showed any signs of slowing down, as the fastest ever recovery from a bear market continued apace today.
The S&P 500 closed at 3,431.28 points, one per cent higher for the day, while the Nasdaq picked up 0.6 per cent to hit 11,379.72 points.
Having last week become the first publicly listed firm in the US to top a market cap of $2 trillion, Apple gained a further 1.2 per cent today.
Days ahead of Fridaty;s 4-to-1 share split, the tech giant closed above $500, at $503.43.
The US Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) decision to add the use of blood plasma from recovered patients to the country’s coronavirus treatment list.
Despite the World Health Organization pouring skepticism on the efficacy of the treatment, markets surged upwards on the back of the move.
In addition, reports that the White House was considering fast-tracking an experimental treatment being developed by Oxford University and Astrazeneca helped to boost sentiment among traders.
The new record comes ahead of the Federal Reserve’s annual symposium at Jackson Hole in Wyoming this week, where Fed chairman Jay Powell will give a highly anticipated speech about the central bank’s policy framework review.
Last week’s record highs capped a dramatic turnaround for US markets this year, with the S&P 500 now around five per cent up this year despite the economic downturn caused by coronavirus.
The Nasdaq, which is packed with the biggest tech names, has been hitting new highs for months, and is now roughly 24 per cent higher for the year.