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The Dow fell 2/4%, or 567 points, while the broader also S&P 500 lost 2.1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.2%.
Crude oil managed to reverse earlier losses, with WTI futures up 1.9% at $23.18.
Shares opened lower and the drop later accelerated following a cautious prediction from New York’s mayor. Mayor Bill DeBlasio said it may take until June for the city to see a low virus spread, Briefing.com reported.
Shortly afterwards, President Donald Trump tweeted that he had absolute authority to reopen the economy, not local officials, and that he would make a decision “shortly”.
U.S. health officials have reiterated calls to ramp up testing for the coronavirus as the White House considers when and how to lift stay-at-home restrictions.
“It’s becoming clear that reaching the virus crescendo does not automatically translate into a timeline for when an economy will re-open,” said Marios Hadjikyriacos, investment analyst at online broker XM in Cyprus.
Among individual stocks, Ford Motor (NYSE:F) fell 4.9% after it warned it lost about $600 million in the first quarter.
Only Ford’s joint ventures in China, where the coronavirus pandemic has been receding, are currently producing vehicles. The automaker said it is working on a scenario for a phased restart of its manufacturing plants beginning in the second quarter.
And DISH Network (NASDAQ:DISH) lost 5.6% after it said it will be cutting jobs and reevaluating its business in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The pandemic has forced us to take a closer look at every aspect of our business, at our work volumes, our areas of focus and investments, and the performance of our team members,” Chief Executive Office Erik Carlson told employees in an internal memo.
— Reuters contributed to this report.
