China News Agency, New York, February 28. With the spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the US stock market ended its worst week since 2008, and the Dow fell nearly 360 points on the day.
On the day, the three major stock indexes fluctuated. The Dow closed at 25409.36 points, a drop of 1.39%. The S & P 500 closed at 2954.22 points, a drop of 0.82%. The Nasdaq Composite Index closed at 8587.37 points, up 0.01%. This week, the Dow has fallen by nearly 4,000 points and the S & P 500 has fallen by more than 11%. US media said this was the worst week for U.S. stocks since October 2008.
Federal Reserve Chairman Powell issued a statement that afternoon saying that the economic fundamentals of the United States are good, but the risks brought about by the new crown pneumonia epidemic are increasing. The Fed is closely monitoring developments and economic outlook indicators. The Fed will use its own tools and appropriate actions to support economic development.
The media saw Powell's statement as a signal of a rate cut and believed that the Fed was trying to appease market sentiment. The Associated Press reported that after the statement was issued, the three major stock indexes all fluctuated and rose, and the Dow recovered more than 600 points of "lost ground" 15 minutes before the close.
The New York Times said that the biggest concerns of investors at present are two points: one is that the large-scale isolation and other measures to control the epidemic will affect corporate profits, and the second is that the epidemic itself will continue to deteriorate. "Wall Street Journal" quoted analysts as saying that the market is obviously affected by panic, but it is still difficult to judge how the future trend will develop, and investors are advised to adopt a balanced strategy and not to rush to buy or sell stocks.
A review article published on the New York Times website said that given the new crown pneumonia epidemic is the main cause of market panic, the short-term view of the Fed's favorable information may have limited effect. If you want to alleviate the impact of the economy, you must rely on effective medical measures to truly control the spread of the epidemic. (Finish)