⁍ Major U.S. stock indexes gave up early gains and the S&P 500 closed down 23 points, or 0.7%, at 3,488.67.
⁍ France declared a public health state of emergency on Wednesday.
⁍ Italy, Russia and Poland all reported their highest-ever daily tallies of new infections.
– The stock market got off to a rocky start on Wednesday, with the Dow falling more than 200 points in the first minutes of trading, reports MarketWatch. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were also down in early trading, and the Wall Street Journal notes that investors are keeping a close eye on developments in Europe as the coronavirus continues to surge. Italy, Russia, Poland, and France have all reported record-high numbers of cases, with France declaring a public health state of emergency on Wednesday, reports Reuters. “The fear is we are headed back towards a lockdown, not a re-opening of economies,” says one investment strategist.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-markets/world-stocks-sag-on-pandemic-surge-gold-gains-on-safety-bid-idUSKBN26Y374