A mixed picture on the Wall, with the Dow and S&P 500 gaining for the third consecutive session and the Nasdaq moving slightly downward, as concerns about the Omicron mutation of the coronavirus, which with its appearance about ten days ago caused severe shocks in global markets.
The Dow Index is trading above 1,100 points in the last three sessions as investors chase opportunities in the aftermath of the sell-off following the announcement of the location of the new mutant.
“In theory, such strong gains are a sign of instability and should be treated with caution, but the good news is that volatility is easing and fears are gradually easing,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a Swissquote analyst, said in a note to clients.
The optimism in the investment climate is maintained today by the results of an “initial laboratory study” announced today by Pfizer and BioNTech, which showed that their covid-19 vaccine neutralizes the Omicron mutation after three or two doses and the booster.
Blood plasma from people who received two doses of the vaccine had a 25-fold reduction in levels of anti-micron neutralizing antibodies compared to the original strain of the virus, the two companies said. The booster dose of the vaccine increases the antibodies, offering similar levels of protection as the two doses in the original virus strain and other variants.
“While both doses of the vaccine continue to provide protection against severe disease from the micron strain, it is clear from these preliminary data that protection is improved by a third dose of the vaccine,” said Pfizer CEO Albert Burla.
The conclusions of Pfizer and BioNTech broadly confirmed the preliminary study by the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa. The institute’s researchers announced yesterday that Omicron may partially escape the protection offered by the two doses of the Pfizer – BioNTech vaccine, adding that a third dose is likely to help treat the highly mutated strain.
Meanwhile, yesterday GlaxoSmithKline announced that the antibody therapy against Covid-19 that it has developed with the American Vir Biotechnology is effective against all mutations of the new Omicron strain, according to the latest preclinical studies.
His performance 10-year government bond of the US adds about 2 basis points to 1.5% on Wednesday, while the dollar falls 0.2% to the ICE US Dollar.
Indicators – Statistics
On the dashboard, the industrial index Dow Jones strengthened by 0.08% to 35,750 points, the widest S&P 500 adds 0.21% reaching 4,700 units and the technological Nasdaq falls 0.15% to 15,660 points.
From 30 shares that make up the Dow, 15 stocks are moving with a positive sign and an equal number with a negative. The gains are led by American Express (+ 1.72%), Apple (+ 1.56%) and International Business Machines (+ 1.13%), while the biggest losses are recorded by Honeywell International (-1.16%), Cisco Systems (-0.91%) and Goldman Sachs (-0.8%).
In the individual shares, the Chinese social networking company Weibo Corp. made its debut in Hong Kong with losses of 7.2% with its listed share in the US market following “in the red” losing 2.8%.
Stitch Fix is down about 25% after the clothing retailer announced disappointing guidance.
Pfizer and BioNTech securities are trading at a loss of 1% and 3% respectively despite their optimistic announcements about the coronavirus vaccine.
Investor interest is focused on securities companies linked to the cryptocurrency market, including Coinbase, whose executives will report to Congress. Coinbase shares rose 0.6% on Wednesday.
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I am Sophia william, author of World Stock Market. I have a degree in journalism from the University of Missouri and I have worked as a reporter for several news websites. I have a passion for writing and informing people about the latest news and events happening in the world. I strive to be accurate and unbiased in my reporting, and I hope to provide readers with valuable information that they can use to make informed decisions.
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