Stock futures were roughly flat Tuesday evening as investors considered ongoing signs that coronavirus cases were leveling off in some hot spots in the U.S., helping brighten the prospects that social distancing measures would be lifted and business activity would eventually resume.
During the regular session earlier in the day, stocks ended higher and the Nasdaq climbed nearly 4%, as Amazon’s heavily weighed stock hit a record high on hopes the e-commerce giant would see a sustained sales boost amid the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the federal government made more progress in helping to provide aid to companies and industries most deeply undercut by the pandemic. After market close, the U.S. Treasury announced preliminary agreements to provide at least 10 U.S. airlines with access to billions of dollars in funds to help support the carriers as demand – and revenues – drop off.
A new method of counting coronavirus deaths in New York City to include victims who had not been hospitalized sent the region’s death toll soaring by 3,700 to above 10,000 on Tuesday. At the state level, coronavirus deaths benchmarked to the previous counting method also rose on Monday, but new hospitalizations declined.
While death tolls remain elevated in absolute terms, widespread social distancing measures have mostly showed signs of “flattening the curve” for new cases in New York and in hot spots across the U.S. With these early signs in mind, some state leaders on Tuesday provided further details about the shape of an eventual economic reopening. California Governor Gavin Newsom unveiled his state’s plan Tuesday late afternoon, which outlined the state’s list of considerations for easing social distancing standards without providing a specific timeline.
Looking ahead to Wednesday, investors are poised to receive March retail sales data from the Commerce Department, which is expected to show an 8% plunge for the month as the pandemic kept consumers on the sidelines. Corporate quarterly earnings results set for release include Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Goldman Sachs (GS) and UnitedHealth Group (UNH).
Stocks have been volatile this year amid the pandemic.
—
Here were the main moves at the start of the overnight session for U.S. equity futures, as of 6:09 p.m. ET Tuesday:
-
S&P 500 futures (ES=F): down 2 points, or -0.07% to 2,841.00
-
Dow futures (YM=F): up 12 points, or +0.05% to 23,892.00
-
Nasdaq futures (NQ=F): down 0.5 points, or -0.01% to 8,682.00
—
Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, and reddit.
Find live stock market quotes and the latest business and finance news
For tutorials and information on investing and trading stocks, check out Cashay