Online Companies Thrive with Remote Work Activation... Nasdaq Holds Strong

Stock Prices of Video Conferencing Service Companies Soar Amid Work-from-Home and Stay-at-Home Orders

Despite Sharp Declines in the Three Major New York Indexes

Nasdaq Only Slightly Down

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jaehee] Despite the economic recession, U.S. technology companies continue to show strength. Especially as stay-at-home orders expand worldwide, the growth of online-related sectors stands out compared to offline sectors. While the three major New York stock indexes all fell sharply despite the Federal Reserve's unlimited quantitative easing, only the Nasdaq experienced a slight decline.

On the Nasdaq market closed on the 23rd (local time), the biggest gainer was Zoom Video, which provides video conferencing services. With the increase in work-from-home due to COVID-19, its stock surged 21.64%. It also hit an intraday record high. Following this, online streaming service providers Roku and Netflix also showed significant gains. In Roku's case, investment information providers Baird Equity Research and Needham raised their investment ratings, reflecting expectations of increased demand due to stay-at-home orders caused by COVID-19. Netflix also surged 8.47%. Amazon closed up 3.46% after announcing it would increase overtime pay for warehouse workers due to the surge in online shopping demand. However, Facebook, Apple (-1.33%), and Google (-0.93%) declined.

On the other hand, energy stocks, which were directly hit by COVID-19, as well as automakers affected by factory shutdowns, saw large declines. ExxonMobil (-3.94%), Chevron (-8.71%), ConocoPhillips (-8.53%), GM (-2.98%), and Ford (-7.39%) all closed down. Boeing, which has been falling continuously due to successive negative factors and decreased demand, instead closed up 11.30%. On this day, Boeing announced it would suspend operations at its Seattle-area factory for at least two weeks. Analysts interpret this move as creating expectations that Boeing’s costs will be reduced. Goldman Sachs upgraded its investment rating on Boeing from neutral to buy, stating that Boeing holds sufficient cash and that air travel demand will return to normal once the COVID-19 crisis ends.