Stock Market News: Costco Cleans Up on Coronavirus Anxiety; United Cuts Flights
The stock market has been extremely volatile for a while now, and Thursday morning brought renewed pressure amid greater concerns about the likely impact of the novel coronavirus on the U.S. population. The governor of California declared a state of emergency following the first death of a state resident from the virus, further ramping up the alert level over the COVID-19 outbreak. As of 11 a.m. EST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) was down 690 points to 26,401. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) fell 73 points to 3,057, and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) dropped 162 points to 8,856.
Consumer response to the coronavirus threat has had a mixed impact on different companies. Shares of warehouse retailer Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST) rose as investors saw some potential positives for the company from the demand for goods in anticipation of possible measures to fight the outbreak. However, United Airlines Holdings (NASDAQ: UAL) cut back on domestic flights, expecting the lull in travel to continue for some time.
Shares of Costco Wholesale were up slightly on Thursday morning, defying the market's drop. The retailer has already seen signs of panic-buying among those seeking to stockpile vital goods, and investors are curious to see how that trend might show up in the company's fiscal second-quarter financial report due out later today.
Source Fool.com
