[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] Major indices on the New York stock market showed strength amid expectations of a delayed tapering. The formal approval of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine also stimulated investor sentiment.
On the 23rd (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 215.63 points (0.61%) to close at 35,335.71, the S&P 500 index increased by 37.86 points (0.85%) to 4,479.53, and the Nasdaq index gained 227.99 points (1.55%) to finish at 14,942.65.
The Nasdaq approached the 15,000 mark and set a new all-time closing high. Recently, preference for tech stocks has been spreading again due to the spread of the Delta variant.
Semiconductor sector leader Nvidia continued its rally with an additional 5% rise today following last week's earnings announcement.
Major tech stocks such as Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, and Alphabet also rose by about 1% each.
Following Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan's remarks last week that he would reconsider early tapering if the Delta variant continues to spread, the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) released by IHS Markit on the same day signaled a downturn in the U.S. economy, stabilizing investor sentiment.
The dollar weakened while U.S. Treasury yields rose. The 10-year Treasury yield fell slightly by 0.007 points to 1.253%. The dollar index dropped 0.5%, battling around the 93 level.
As a result of the FDA's formal approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, Pfizer's shares rose 2.5%, and BioNTech's surged 9.6%. Moderna's stock also jumped 7.6%. Novavax, which has yet to release a vaccine, saw its shares soar 8%.
Shares of Trillium Therapeutics, a cancer drug company acquired by Pfizer for $2.3 billion, surged by 180%.
Expectations for expanded vaccine distribution led to a rare rally in airline stocks such as United and American Airlines, as well as cruise line companies.
Energy sector stocks rose by more than 3% due to rising oil prices and a falling dollar.
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