NEW YORK – Wall Street stocks shook off early weakness yesterday, while other equity markets were mixed and oil prices fell again as investors weighed the latest Covid-19 developments.
Analysts cited bargain hunting as a factor in the US bounce back from Monday’s lacklustre session, which was dented by worries over global growth and the infectious Delta variant of the coronavirus.
Art Hogan, chief strategist at National Securities, said investors have been heartened by data showing an uptick in US vaccinations in response to the latest surge in infections.
“The more news we get, there’s the recognition that this variant is not going to lead to the same kind of lockdowns as a year ago,” Hogan said.
The broad-based S&P 500 finished up 0.8% to close at a new all-time high.
London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index ended 0.3% higher, as strong BP results showed that the market heavyweight had swung back into profit.
Paris advanced while Frankfurt finished slightly lower.
“We’re going through a very interesting period in the markets, one in which sentiment seems to change from one day to the next,” said Craig Erlam, an analyst at Oanda.
Cases on the rise
Meanwhile, oil prices slipped further adding to Monday’s sharp losses as the reimposition of lockdowns and other restrictions in several countries including China renewed concerns.
“From the US to Asia Pacific, cases are sharply on the rise in many places, with the market attempting to gauge how extensive, and perhaps more importantly – how long any return to stronger lockdown measures could be in key regions,” said Robbie Fraser, analyst at Schneider Electric.
Hong Kong and Shanghai also continue to be buffeted by uncertainty caused by China’s regulations on the tech, private education and property sectors, which has raised worries that officials will target other industries.
Gaming firms appeared to be next in the crosshairs after a state-run media commentary described online games as “spiritual opium”.
“Fears over Chinese regulatory interference aren’t going away, with Tencent the latest stock to slump on chatter about Beijing seeking to wield its power,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
Among individual companies, online trading platform Robinhood Markets shot up more than 24% in its best session since going public last week. – AFP, August 4, 2021
