The Dow Jones Industrial Average continues to rally on the economy's reopening. Airlines, retail stocks, and cruise lines pressed higher on optimism that the economy will experience a V-shaped recovery.
Read on for more of what's moving the Dow Jones today.
First, here are the numbers from Friday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Index
Previous Close
Point Change
Percentage Change
Dow Jones
27,110.98
+829.16
+3.15
S&P 500
3,193.93
+81.58
+2.62
Nasdaq
9,814.08
+198.27
+2.06
Now here are what I think will be the most important market events and stocks on Monday morning.
The Top Stock Market Stories for Monday
This morning, airline stocks, hotel stocks, and retailers are ripping higher as investors speculate that the reopening of the U.S. economy will facilitate a faster-than-expected recovery. This morning, shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) and Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) were up more than 8%. Shares of Hilton Hotels Corp. (NYSE: HLT) and Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) also rallied. We will be keeping a close eye on the reopening efforts of states across the country and hope that the number of new coronavirus cases remains flat.
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Over the weekend, the number of global coronavirus cases topped 7 million. In the United States, the case total surpassed 1.9 million, according to Johns Hopkins University. The big focus today will center on New York City, which has entered the first phase of its reopening plan. The local government will allow nonessential retail companies to reopen, in addition to work for construction and manufacturing. The plan could see at least 400,000 people returning to work this week. However, civil unrest remains a very important matter in Manhattan, where the mayor has committed to reducing funding for the police.
Finally, the U.S. Federal Reserve is back in focus. On Tuesday, the Fed will kick off its two-day FOMC meeting. The event will likely feature a lot of chatter about future events, but very little in the way of changes on monetary policy. The big question will center on how the Fed plans to control yield curves and how much more bond purchasing we can expect out of the central bank. However, don't expect any move on interest rates, even if there is growing chatter about the possibility of negative interest rates in the future.
Stocks to Watch Today: BA, GILD, AZN, GS
Shares of Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) rallied again this morning after it received an upgrade from Seaport Global Securities. The stock, trading at $205, received a price target of $277. The group said that the worst of the pandemic has been priced in and that it expects stronger cash flow for the airline manufacturer in the future.
In deal news, AstraZeneca Plc. (NYSE: AZN) reportedly attempted to reach a merger with Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) last month. The latter has been a front-runner in the quest for a vaccine for coronavirus, and a merger of equals would have created a powerhouse pharmaceutical giant. However, reports now indicate that Astrazeneca no longer has interest in a deal.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is now facing renewed pressure from the Malaysian government over the settlement tied to the 1MDB scandal. The nation's prime minister said that a $3 billion settlement would not be enough to satisfy the populace over the scandal involving its sovereign wealth fund. Goldman had reportedly offered $1 billion to settle charges that it misled investors over bond sales. However, Malaysia says that the company's alleged deception was related to $6.5 billion.
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Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.