NEW YORK, June 2 — Wall Street stocks opened mostly higher today as investors focused on stimulus measures and the lift from a reopening economy more than mass protests in US cities and economic headwinds.
About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 25,576.65, up 0.4 per cent.
The broad-based S&P 500 climbed 0.2 per cent to 3,060.48, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 0.2 per cent to 9,537.16.
Major cities in the US, many under curfew, were taking stock early today after another night of protests following the killing of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, at the hands of police.
The unrest comes as the US economy has only just begun to reopen in many places after a series of shutdowns due to the coronavirus that has eliminated more than 40 million jobs and rendered the US economy a shadow of its former self.
But the market is not focused on the bad news, said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare.
“There appears to be a process of conscious disassociation from anything negative,” said O’Hare. “It boils down to banking on the Fed’s policy support as being the bridge over troubled waters to a better tomorrow.” — AFP
