The Dow Jones finished 3% higher at 24,242.49 points.
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The New York Stock Exchange ended the week on a positive note on Friday, prompted by encouraging signals about an upcoming reopening of the US economy and a test on a possible treatment for COVID-19.
Its flagship index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, rose 2.99% to 24,242.49 points and the highly technological Nasdaq appreciated 1.38% to 8,650.14 points.
The S&P 500, which represents the 500 largest companies on Wall Street, rose 2.68% to 2,874.56 points.
The major indices of the New York place are displayed on the way up for the second week in a row: the Dow Jones recorded a weekly increase of 2.2%, the Nasdaq of 6.1% and the S&P 500 of 3 , 1%.
However, a flood of indicators this week confirmed the economic damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictive measures imposed to try to stop its spread.
Latest: China’s gross domestic product collapsed 6.8% in the first quarter.
But on Friday, brokers were reassured by information from the Stat News publication that the first results of a study on a drug from the Gilead laboratory (whose price jumped 9.73%) for patients with severe cases of Covid-19 were promising. Several analysts, however, urged caution in the face of still very preliminary results.
In the same industry, Moderna jumped 15.39% after announcing it had received $ 483 million from the U.S. government to speed up work on a Covid-19 vaccine.
Market momentum was also fueled by the White House’s presentation on Thursday evening of a plan on how to restart America.
The decision to lift the more or less strict restrictions or confinement decreed to stem the pandemic would ultimately rest with the governors of the 50 states. But the executive has developed recommendations to “guide” them.
“The return + to normal + of the economy will be gradual, and the market usually does not like this notion of progressivity. But with the latest headlines, investors seem to be seeing a light at the bottom of the tunnel, ”commented JJ Kinahan of TD Ameritrade.
Another optimistic signal: Boeing announced Thursday a gradual resumption, next week, of its production of commercial aircraft in the United States, after a hiatus of several weeks. Its title jumped 14.72%.
On the bond market, the 10-year rate on the debt of the United States rose at 8:15 p.m. GMT to 0.6465% against 0.6267% the day before at the close.
Demand for hygiene products
Among other values of the day, the American manufacturer of household and hygienic products Procter and Gamble rose by 2.63% after having seen its sales increase by 5% from January to March while the Americans rushed on its brands of toilet paper, soaps and cough syrups as COVID-19 spreads.
Oil services company Schlumberger posted a net loss of $ 7.38 billion in the first quarter, weighed down by a heavy burden of $ 8.5 billion related to the impact of the pandemic on the energy sector. To save cash, the group will notably reduce its dividends by 75%.
But excluding exceptional items, the group’s earnings per share slightly exceeded expectations and the share gained 8.75%.
Uber (+ 3.51%) said it was abandoning the forecasts announced in early February, when it estimated it could generate a positive gross operating surplus (Ebitda) for the first time in the fourth quarter of 2020.
The group also announced that its net loss would be increased from $ 1.9 billion to $ 2.2 billion in the first quarter following a decrease in the value of some of its investments due to the pandemic.
Ford (+ 3.64%) also warned of a net loss of $ 2 billion over the same period due to the drop in car sales.
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