U.S. Stocks fell sharply into their worst drop of the coronavirus outbreak on Monday, dropping lower than the massive sell-off on Thursday and losing all of Friday's gains. On Sunday, the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates down to almost zero, which is their lowest level since 2015, and launched a $700 billion quantitative easing program.
All three major market indices fell to their closing lows after President Donald Trump announced that the COVID-19 outbreak could last until August. Trump also hinted to reporters that the U.S. may be headed towards a recession. The biggest concern for investors now its that the closure of businesses and efforts to keep people indoors will halt consumer spending, which is the biggest driver of the economy.
Here's how the stock market closed to begin the week:
S&P 500 Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Nasdaq Composite Index
In Major Stock News, Amazon
In Stock Sector News, all sectors took a beating Monday, especially those that rely on a health, moving economy. The performance losses were as follows: Real Estate -16.55%, Financials -13.99%, Information Technology -13.91%, Energy -13.63%, Consumer Discretionary -12.08%, Utilities -11.54%, Industrials -11.45%, Materials -11.44%, Communication Services -10.44%, Health Care -9.99% and Consumer Staples -6.99%.
Lastly, in Commodity and Currency News, crude barrel prices dropped to new lows Monday. West Texas Intermediate