US markets end lower as coronavirus fears bearhug investors

28 Mar 2020 Evaluate

The US markets ended deeply in red on Friday as traders looked to cash in on the strong gains seen in recent days. Lingering concerns about the economic impact of the coronavirus also weighed on the markets, as the number of confirmed cases in the US surpassed the number of cases in China or Italy. There have been more than 97,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in the US and nearly 1,500 deaths. Besides, adding to the negative sentiment, the University of Michigan released a report showing consumer sentiment deteriorated by much more than initially estimated in the month of March. The report said the consumer sentiment index for March was downwardly revised to 89.1 from the preliminary reading of 95.9. The consumer sentiment index is now down sharply from the final February reading of 101.0, reflecting the fourth largest one-month decline in nearly a half-century.

However, the Commerce Department released a report showing personal income in the US increased more than expected in the month of February, while personal spending rose in line with street estimates. The report said personal income climbed by 0.6 percent in February, matching the increase seen in January. Street had expected income to rise by 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said personal spending edged up by 0.2 percent for the second straight month, matching expectations. Excluding price changes, personal spending inched up by just 0.1 percent for the third consecutive month.

Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 915.39 points or 4.06 percent to 21,636.78, Nasdaq fell 295.16 points or 3.79 percent to 7,502.38 and S&P 500 was down by 88.6 points or 3.37 percent to 2,541.47.

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