Stocks recovered most of their earlier losses on Thursday as investors grappled with a a jump in reported coronavirus cases and the virus’ possible economic impact.
The Dow Jones Industrials fell 78.78 points to 29,472.64, falling from Wednesday’s all-time high
The S&P 500 came off its lows of the morning, staying in the minus column 1.24 points from Wednesday’s peak to 3,378.21
The NASDAQ eked up 1.27 points to 9,727.23.
In corporate news, Cisco fell more than 6% after the company reported another decline in overall revenue. In the fourth quarter, Cisco’s revenue dropped by 4% on a year-over-year basis. That decline overshadowed a better-than-expected profit.
PepsiCo, Alibaba and Applied Materials all reported quarterly earnings that beat expectations. Applied Materials shares gained 4.7%, but PepsiCo faltered 0.1%, and Alibaba dropped 1.6%.
The major averages hit their session lows after the CDC confirmed the 15th U.S. coronavirus case.
China said it confirmed 15,152 new cases and 254 additional deaths. That brings the country’s total death toll to 1,367 as the number of people infected jumped to nearly 60,000, according to the Chinese government.
On the data front, weekly jobless claims rose marginally, but remained near multi-decade lows. The latest read on the U.S. Consumer Price Index — a widely followed measure of inflation — rose 2.5% on a year-over-year basis.
Prices for the 10-Year U.S. Treasury gained a bit of ground, lowering yields to 1.62% from Wednesday’s 1.63%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices acquired 22 cents to $51.39 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices hiked $6.50 to $1,578.10 U.S. an ounce.