Wall Street Tumbles Amid COVID Worries

Dow falls 219
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Nov 20, 2020 3:05 PM CST
Wall Street Tumbles Amid COVID Worries
In this photo provided by the New York Stock Exchange, trader Ashley Lara works with a colleague on the floor Friday, Nov. 20, 2020.   (Courtney Crow/New York Stock Exchange via AP)

US stocks fell on Friday as worries about the worsening pandemic undercut growing optimism about a coming coronavirus vaccine, per the AP. The Dow dropped 219 points to 29,263, the S&P 500 fell 24 points to 3,557, and the Nasdaq fell 49 points to 11,854. Wall Street began to teeter-totter this week after a big November rally swept both the S&P 500 and Dow to record highs, per the AP. Evidence is piling up for investors both for hope about the economy’s prospects next year and for fear about the damage accruing in the shorter term.

“It’s a market concerned about growth,” said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Financial. “That’s the big uncertainty.” Adding to the optimistic side of the ledger Friday was Pfizer and BioNTech submitting an application with US regulators for emergency use of their vaccine candidate. On the pessimistic side, more governments around the world are bringing back restrictions on daily life to slow the spread of the virus. Surging coronavirus counts and hospitalizations also threaten to frighten consumers enough to keep them hunkered at home and drag on the economy.

(More stock market stories.)

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