Florida Coronavirus Cases Spook Markets While Tech Rides High – Daily Financial News Summary For Thursday, July 9, 2020
Mixed markets today as the Nasdaq reached record highs after closing up 0.5%, while the Dow Jones slid 0.5% and the S&P 500 fell 0.6%.
Some of today’s biggest winners were Amazon, which was up 3.3%, Costco was up 2.915%, while Walmart closed up 2.66%. Video game company Electronic Arts saw shares go up 2.35%.
While many were up today, Walgreens Boots Alliance saw shares dive 7.8% as a result of their missed earnings. Much of the negative reaction was attributed to their Boots UK stores low sales numbers from low foot traffic due to stay-at-home orders. They plan to cut 4,000 jobs in the Boots UK business as a result.
Others that saw losses included Kohl’s retail and United Airlines, which both were down 7.25%. Oil and gas stocks also took a hit with Hess Corp down 9.4%, Phillips 66 down 7.8%, and Marathon Oil down over 7% today.
Hong Kong National Security Law Threat To U.S Tech Giants And Financial Institutions
China imposing Hong Kong Security Bill 2020 and the U.S retaliating with a new sanction bill is a tailwind that threatens U.S companies’ operations in the former British colony. The security law has already had its first casualty, ByteDance, has announced it is ending support for video service TikTok in Hong Kong.
With the passing of the Hong Kong national security law, Beijing now has sweeping powers to prosecute any entity it perceives as a threat to national security. On its part, Washington has responded the best way it knows, fearing its interests in the semi-autonomous region are at considerable risk.
The U.S Congress has already passed a bill that establishes penalties to foreign persons or entities that undermine Hong Kong one country, two systems, under the new security law. The bill gives the government of the day the power to block assets and deny U.S entry to entities that implement the security law.
