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NEW YORK (AP) — Most of Wall Street wilted today on worries that the economy’s recent improvements may be set to fade as coronavirus cases keep climbing. The S&P lost 0.6%, falling 17.89 points to close at 3,152.05, with three in four stocks within the index falling. The sharpest drops hit oil companies, airlines and other stocks whose fortunes are most closely tied to a reopening and strengthening economy. Treasury yields also sank in another sign of increased caution. Tech stocks were an outlier, helping the Nasdaq to hit another record, it rose 55.25, or 0.5%, to 10,547.75. The Dow dropped 361.19 points, or 1.4%, to 25,706.09. The Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks lost 28.48, or 2%, to 1,398.92.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy is stumbling as the viral outbreak is intensifying across the country, threatening to slow hiring even as the unemployment rate remains in double-digits. Coronavirus case counts are rising in 38 states and the U.S. set a record for the most new cases earlier this week. In six states representing one-third of the U.S. economy — Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, and Texas — governors are reversing their reopening plans. Reopening efforts are on pause in another 15 states.
DUNMORE, Pa. (AP) — Democrat Joe Biden is turning his campaign against President Donald Trump toward the economy. Today, he introduced a New Deal-like economic agenda while drawing a sharp contrast with a billionaire incumbent he said has abandoned working-class Americans amid cascading crises. Biden presented details of a comprehensive agenda that he touted as the most aggressive government investment in the U.S. economy since World War II. He also accused Trump of ignoring the coronavirus pandemic and the climate crisis while encouraging division amid a national reckoning with systemic racism. The economy was expected to be a strength for Trump in his reelection bid before the pandemic.
BILLINGS, Montana (AP) — The U.S. energy boom and strong backing from President Donald Trump propelled a major expansion of the nation’s sprawling oil and gas pipeline network in the past decade. But mounting political pressure and legal setbacks have put its future growth in doubt — even as the pandemic saps demand for fuel. Two major oil pipelines in the Midwest suffered courtroom blows this week and utilities in the Southeast cancelled plans for an $8 billion gas transmission line. Industry executives acknowledge their opponents have found some success in the courts, but say demand will rebound and pipelines are the safest way to move oil.
SEATTLE (AP) — Cookware and kitchen chain Sur La Table is closing 56 of its 121 stores as it seeks bankruptcy protection, the latest retail casualty of the coronavirus pandemic. The privately held Seattle-based company says it has agreed to sell its remaining stores to affiliates of Fortress Investment Group following the bankruptcy procedure and store closures. The post-sale company will also include its in-person and online cooking classes, and its e-commerce business. Sur La Table had its start in Seattle’s Pike Place Market in 1972.
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