US equities rebounded on Mon after US President Joe Biden said there is no
need for lockdowns in response to the omicron Covid variant. The Dow Jones
Industrial Average gained 236.60 pts, or 0.68%, to close at 35,135.94. The S&P
500 index rose 1.32%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.88%.
However, the small-cap Russell 2000 fell 0.18%.
Adding to investor confidence were reports from South African health experts
that the omicron variant appeared to cause only mild symptoms. However, the
WHO (World Health Organization) wrote on its website that “initial reported
infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to
have more mild disease”.
A US federal court blocked the Biden administration from enforcing a vaccine
mandate for health-care workers in 10 states. Shares of Pfizer (PFE US, -
2.96%) and Merck (MRK US, -5.39%) fell.
However, BioNTech (BNTX US, +4.17%) and Moderna (MRNA US, +11.8%)
shares were up after reports said that both firms are working to adapt their shots
to address omicron. BioNTech said it could have a new version within 100 days.
Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and CEO of Twitter (TWTR US, -2.74%), is
stepping down, making way for the current Chief Technology Officer Parag
Agrawal to replace Dorsey immediately.
The 10-year Treasury note yield notched up 2.56 basis points (bps) to 1.4987%.