Erasing all gains for the benchmark S&P 500 index this week. Wall Street’s main indexes dropped on Friday as U.S.-China tensions and fears over mounting COVID-19 cases weighed on investor sentiment.
Technology stocks were the biggest drag on all the three main indexes with high-flying companies Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Microsoft Corp, which were pivotal in driving the stock market’s recovery in recent months, down between 0.8% and 1.9%. The technology index fell 1.6%, more than any other S&P sector.
For three straight days, the United States recorded more than 1,100 deaths related to the novel coronavirus on Thursday, which has infected about 4 million Americans.
Intel Corp tumbled 16.9% after the company said it was six months behind schedule in developing next-generation, power-efficient chip technology and that it would consider farming out more work to outside semiconductor foundries…
Latest survey showed U.S. business activity increased to a six-month high in July, but companies reported a drop in new orders as a resurgence in new COVID-19 cases weighed on demand.
MacDailyNews Note: Here are the COVID-19 death rate chart through July 23:
Worldwide:
United States of America:
MacDailyNews Take: Obviously, we remain in a catch-22. We must have an economy and we’re in the midst of a pandemic. Both conditions will exist simultaneously until we have effective treatments and a vaccine, so try to be as safe as you can be – wash your hands frequently, keep your hands away from your face, wear a mask in public, practice social distancing, etc.
The CDC guidelines for how to protect yourself and others — especially older adults and people who have severe underlying medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes and are at higher risk for developing serious complications from COVID-19 — are here.