US stocks rose on Wednesday as investors weighed rising coronavirus cases against efforts to reopen the economy.
On Tuesday, the US reported another single-day record of 60,000 new coronavirus cases, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 3 million, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
The so-called reopening trade stumbled, with shares of cruise lines and airlines such as American and Delta falling. United Airlines slipped after it warned 36,000 employees about potential job cuts.
The losses were more than offset by gains in major technology companies, which have led the broader market as investors bet on their ability to perform amid a recession. Shares of Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet all rose. Apple hit a record high.
Here’s where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. ET market close on Wednesday:
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Tensions between the US and China have grown after Beijing last week passed a new security law in Hong Kong, restricting free speech. China’s stock market gained again after an editorial in a state-run newspaper earlier this week encouraged buying to support a healthy bull market following the coronavirus pandemic.
Gold topped $1,800 an ounce for the first time since 2011 as investors piled into the safe-haven asset amid mounting fears of a second wave of coronavirus cases.
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Twitter surged as much as 12% Wednesday after the company posted a job listing saying it is building a new subscription platform. Nikola jumped 38% at intraday highs after JPMorgan upgraded shares of the company to overweight from neutral.
Oil prices gained following a key report from the Energy Department that showed that crude stockpiles increased last week. West Texas Intermediate crude rose as much as 1.1%, to $41.08 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, gained 0.9%, to $43.47 per barrel, at intraday highs.
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