The market is paying renewed attention to the all-important “curve” of the virus that dominated headlines and consumed Wall Street in the early days of the pandemic, then seemed to disappear as a worry in recent weeks.
Early July has seen a spike in virus cases in the U.S., with some of the states that reopened around Memorial Day suffering the worst trends: Florida, Arizona and Texas have been notable sources of the so-called “second wave.”
The S&P 500 fell for the first time since June 26 on Tuesday, the Nasdaq pulled back from record highs and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 396 points, or 1.5%, to finish at 25,890.
Disney+ turning Hamilton to Benjamins. Disney’s (ticker: DIS) Disney+ streaming platform is enjoying a surge of a different kind: a surge in users. The Disney+ app was downloaded more than 750,000 times across the world this past weekend, a 47% jump from the average of the prior four weekends, according to the analytical company Apptopia.
The hit Broadway play about one of America’s founding fathers has been adapted to a movie that began streaming on Disney+ on Friday, and if the early results are any indication, that’s been a savvy move by the House of Mouse.
Risk-off, Walmart on. Shares of big-box retailer Walmart ( WMT) jumped on Tuesday, advancing 6.8%. The stock closed as the best performer in the S&P 500 on the day, as a rush to safety by investors resulted in heavy demand for the relatively impenetrable Walmart.
Walmart plans to launch Walmart+ later this month as part of its answer to Amazon Prime ( AMZN), according to a report by Vox’s Recode.
It also plays into a trend that’s repeated several times in the volatile days of 2020: Large-cap, blue-chip consumer staples generally outperform when Wall Street is deep in the red.
Levi shedding jobs. Iconic jeans company Levi Strauss ( LEVI), a staple of American commerce since its foundation in 1853 on the heels of the gold rush, is seeing tougher times in the 21st century. The denim dynamo announced that sales fell 62% last quarter and that the company would be shedding 15% of its corporate workforce.
The pandemic has cost Levi dearly, with the company feeling the impact of about 10 weeks of store closures. The slashes to Levi’s workforce will impact about 700 jobs.
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Walmart Surges Higher, Dow Slides originally appeared on usnews.com
