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On July 14, 2021, Sameday Testing published the most recent Covid-19 case figures for Los Angeles County. As the highly transmissible Delta variation has become the main strain in the United States, Covid-19 infections are on the rise in most states.
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Following a better-than-expected retail sales report, U.S. stock futures were slightly higher ahead of Wall Street’s opening bell. Markets were also keeping a careful eye on the fast-spreading Delta strain of the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19. The Commerce Department said that retail sales in the United States grew 0.6 percent in June, exceeding estimates of a 0.4 percent fall. Sales were up 1.3 percent excluding automobiles.
Futures in the stock market
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a stock market index that measures how well
The S&P 500 index increased 55 points, or 0.2 percent, while
S&P 500 Index
Futures increased by 0.2 percent.
The Nasdaq Composite Index
Futures increased by 0.2 percent. “While the United States is doing well with vaccine rollout plans and the reopening of the economy, with theme and holiday parks also reopening,” Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets U.K., wrote in a note to clients, “the rise in cases that we are now seeing appears to be feeding into an overriding feeling of caution around consumer spending patterns, which appears to be tempering retail sales.” The
The Nikkei 225 index is a Japanese stock market index.
Following the announcement, the stock dropped 0.9 percent.
The Bank of Japan is a Japanese financial institution.
lowered its annual growth prediction to 3.8 percent from 4 percent. The central bank has promised to give commercial banks zero-interest loans to help corporations finance climate-change projects. Much of Asia was engulfed in red as fears of the Covid-19 virus spreading grew, particularly in China.
The CSI 300 index is a rating system for companies.
closing at a loss of 1.1 percent President Joe Biden of the United States was scheduled to participate in a virtual meeting with Pacific Rim leaders on Friday, including his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, to devise methods to help economies recover from the renewed Covid-19 pandemic. Rising instances across the United States have prompted officials in the country’s largest county, Los Angeles, to restore an indoor mask mandate, which will take effect on Saturday, even for those who are fully vaccinated.
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European market indices were marginally higher, with the S&P 500 gaining the most.
FTSE 100 is a stock market index that measures the performance of
With a handful of firms reporting and virus fears weighing, major oil company shares increased. That comes as Germany, the eurozone’s largest economy, struggles to recover from disastrous floods in the country’s western regions, which has left more than 80 people dead and hundreds more missing. Flooding has also impacted Belgium and Luxembourg, two bordering countries.
Stocks of
Moderna
were rising in premarket trading on the announcement late Thursday that the company, which developed the highly powerful Covid-19 vaccine, would be included to the S&P 500 index, replacing
Alexion Pharmaceuticals is a pharmaceutical company based in the United States.
21st of July Shares of Intel, among other equities under focus, could be active. According to The Wall Street Journal, the highly weighted semiconductor conglomerate is in talks to buy contract chip maker GlobalFoundries for $30 billion. Stocks of
Ericsson
In Europe, the stock market fell by 9%. The telecommunications equipment manufacturer announced a $8.3 billion multiyear 5G deal with Verizon Communications and reported a second-quarter net profit that above estimates, while sales in China were worse. Ericsson has previously warned that Sweden’s embargo on specific Chinese equipment could spark retaliation, adding that it is now “prudent to predict a considerably lower market share in mainland China for networks and digital services.” To contact the editors at Barron’s, send an email to editors@barrons.com./n
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