Stocks give up gains after Apple says some stores will close again

Stocks struggled on Friday to hold gains as investors weighed rising coronavirus cases in key U.S. states against optimism about a quick economic rebound.

Investors were unsettled by news that Apple (AAPL) would temporarily shutter stores again in U.S. states where COVID-19 cases have been spiking in recent weeks, undercutting the market’s optimism about a rapid recovery. The company confirmed the move to Yahoo Finance via an emailed statement saying that the company is closing its retail stores beginning June 20 out of an abundance of caution.

On Friday, Bloomberg reported China was planning to speed up imports of farm purchases including soy, corn and ethanol. The report, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter, noted that the decision came following discussions between U.S. and Chinese negotiators in Hawaii this week.

A day earlier, stocks closed out the regular session mixed, with the Dow falling for back-to-back sessions, and the Nasdaq rising for its fifth straight day as tech shares continued their run of outperformances. Information technology remains the top-performing sector in the S&P 500 so far in June with a month to date gain of more than 5%, and has outperformed for 2020 so far.

On Friday, stocks may see an additional uptick in volume – and potentially volatility – due to quadruple witching. The quarterly occurrence marks the date in which expirations for stock index futures and options, along with individual stock futures and options, occur simultaneously. Rebalances for S&P indices and SPDR exchange-traded funds will also take place Friday. Heightened volume tends to occur around market open and close during quadruple witching days.

Equity markets registered little reaction to the Labor Department’s weekly report on new unemployment insurance claims Thursday morning, which showed an estimates-topping more than 1.5 million Americans filed new jobless claims last week. But to economists, the data – with the level of new claims still more than double the peak during the Great Recession – was a signal of a slower than expected recovery for the labor market even with shelter in place orders easing.

The “numbers suggest that the reopening story may not be generating as much momentum for job creation as the surprise May payrolls number had suggested,” James Knightley, chief international economist for ING, said in a note.

“While recent activity data, particularly surrounding the consumer sector, has been very encouraging we are a long way from returning to ‘normality,’ Knightley added. “The extended unemployment benefits including the extra $600 per week payment, have clearly supported incomes and spending. However, the $600 payment is due to end in six weeks and if it isn’t extended in an environment where unemployment remains very high, there is a clear risk spending subsides again.”

Some states undergoing reopening processes have also contended with resurgences in coronavirus cases, which could further hamper the recovery. California on Thursday reported its largest one-day increase in Covid-19 cases yet with cases rising by 4,084, and the state mandated that residents wear masks outside their homes. Similarly, new coronavirus cases in Florida rose by a one-day state record of more than 3,200, as did cases in Texas, where the hospitalization rate also increased for a seventh straight day. Other states in the Sun Belt also saw spikes in cases, as regions struggled to keep infection rates down with reopenings under way.

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2:13 p.m. ET: Stocks extend declines, Dow sheds 276 points, or more than 1%

Here were the main moves in markets as of 2:14 p.m. ET:

• S&P 500 (^GSPC): 3,087.68, -27.66 points (-0.89%)

• Dow (^DJI): 25,803.73, -276.37 points (-1.06%)

• Nasdaq (^IXIC): 9,888.1, -56.04 points (-0.57%)

• Crude (CL=F): $39.78, +$0.94 (+2.42%)

• Gold (GC=F): $1,753.20, +$22.31(+1.28%)

• 10-year Treasury (^TNX): +0.1 bps to yield 0.695%

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12:30 p.m. ET: Stocks lose momentum; Apple to close some US stores again

News that Apple is shuttering retail locations in new COVID-19 hotspots in Florida, Arizona and the Carolinas squelched the market’s momentum in afternoon trading, with the Dow giving up triple-digit gains notched at the opening bell. A troubling rise in coronavirus diagnoses in those states have raised fears of a dreaded “second wave” just as the U.S.’s overall count had begun to stabilize.

Here were the main moves in markets as of 12:40 p.m. ET:

• S&P 500 (^GSPC): 3,100.09, -15.25 (-0.49%)

• Dow (^DJI): 25,923.26, -156.84 (-0.60%)

• Nasdaq (^IXIC): 9,917.03, -26.02 (-0.26%)

• Crude (CL=F): $38.72, -0.12 (-0.31%)

• Gold (GC=F): $1,751.40,+20.30(+1.17%)

• 10-year Treasury (^TNX): +3.3 bps to yield 0.727%

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11:09 a.m. ET: Stocks pare some gains

The three major indices held in positive territory but came off the highs of the session. The health-care and energy sectors led gains in the S&P 500, with crude oil topping $40 per barrel. Walgreens and Dow Inc. led gains in the 30-stock Dow.

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