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Bloomberg
US stocks posted biggest weekly gain since 1974 as investors looked past staggering jobless numbers when Federal Reserve released new measures to cushion fallout from coronavirus. Oil fell as investors saw a supply-curb proposal as insufficient.
The S&P 500 Index rallied for the third time in four days, bringing this week’s increase to 12%. The Fed announced another series of sweeping steps to provide as much as $2.3 trillion in additional aid just as data showed the number of claims for unemployment benefits surged for a third week. Anthony Fauci, director of US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said US fatalities from Covid-19 may be far fewer than earlier projections.
“The Fed news is really bullish (along with global fiscal news) if we have confidence on ways to deal with Covid bounce-back and ultimate vaccine solution,†said Dennis
DeBusschere, head of portfolio strategy at Evercore ISI.
“So positive outcomes on that front lead to fair value estimates going up, improving the risk reward from this level.â€
Elsewhere, the Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose. Government bonds in the region gained amid reports that Italy, Spain and the UK may extend lockdowns to combat the coronavirus outbreak. Most Asian stocks rose, though Japanese shares retreated.