Stock market climbs 7% on encouraging COVID-19 signsDow +1627.46 at 22679.99, Nasdaq +540.15 at 7913.23, S&P +175.03 at 2663.68 [BRIEFING.COM] The stock market rallied more than 7% to start the shortened trading week, as sentiment was buoyed by encouraging signs that the COVID-19 outbreak may be improving. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (+7.7%) and Russell 2000 (+8.2%) set the pace, followed by the Nasdaq Composite (+7.3%) and S&P 500 (+7.0%). The positive bias was formed overnight in the futures trade when data out of Europe showed countries reporting fewer coronavirus-related deaths, offering hope that the U.S. could follow a similar path. As the death toll in the U.S. approaches 10,000, New York Governor Cuomo said he's seeing signs that possible flattening of New York's caseload curve is starting to emerge. Social distancing efforts have also provided an improved statistical outlook regarding total U.S. deaths, although the trajectory of the coronavirus is subject to change. Nevertheless, these encouraging signs provided the market some relief that contributed to a broad-based, and steady, advance. The market closed at session highs with the 11 S&P 500 sectors advancing between 3.9% (consumer staples) and 8.8% (information technology). The gains don't necessarily suggest the market is in the clear, though. New coronavirus data could upend today's positive sentiment, a fourth phase stimulus bill could run into some hurdles, and investors don't know what news will come out of the oil industry this week. OPEC+ postponed its production-cut meeting to later this week, which contributed to WTI crude pulling back 7.5%, or $2.13, to $26.21/BBL today. A decision might wait until Friday after a G-20 emergency energy meeting, according The Wall Street Journal. In other news, the Fed announced the establishment of a facility that will purchase small business loans that are guaranteed by the White House's Payroll Protection Program (PPP). Delta Air Lines ($DAL 22.32, -0.16, -0.7%) said it expects Q2 revenue to be down 90%. U.S. Treasuries started the week on a lower note amid the risk-on mindset displayed in the stock market. The 2-yr yield increased eight basis points to 0.27%, and the 10-yr yield increased nine basis points to 0.68%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.2% to 100.73. Investors did not receive any notable economic data on Monday. Looking ahead, investors will receive the JOLTS - Job Openings report for February and the Consumer Credit report for February on Tuesday. Nasdaq Composite -11.8% YTDS&P 500 -17.6% YTDDow Jones Industrial Average -20.5% YTDRussell 2000 -31.8% YTD Market Snapshot Dow22679.99+1627.46(7.73%)Nasdaq7913.23+540.15(7.33%)SP 5002663.68+175.03(7.03%)10-yr Note -29/320.667NYSEAdv 2625 Dec 270 Vol 1.4 blnNasdaqAdv 2730 Dec 542 Vol 3.8 bln Industry Watch Strong: Information Technology, Financials, Consumer DiscretionaryWeak: Consumer Staples Moving the Market -- Stock market rallies more than 7% amid signs that the coronavirus situation is improving, caseload curve could soon flatten -- Broad-based relief rally-- Crude prices fall after OPEC+ postpones emergency meetingECONOMIC EVENTS: There was no U.S. data of note reported. Former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said while being interviewed on CNBC that she believes U.S. GDP in the second quarter is likely to drop by at least 30% and the current unemployment rate is likely around 12%-13% and heading higher. In other Fed news, the Federal Reserve said that it will establish facility to facilitate lending to small businesses via the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program, PPP, by providing term financing backed by PPP loans. Meanwhile, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the state will extend its NY PAUSE initiative, keeping non-essential businesses closed until April 29. Cuomo added that there have been 130,689 total cases of COVID-19 in the state of New York . The latest data from the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering shows there are now 1,324,907 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 73,703 deaths due to the disease. In UK news, media reports, from BBC, Sky News and other sources indicated that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved to intensive care after his coronavirus symptoms worsened. TOP NEWS: Airlines stocks were in focus as many U.S. air carriers said they are applying for federal assistance and adjusting their flight schedules and expectations for the near future amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday, Delta ($DAL) said in a regulatory filing that it expects its April flight schedule to be 80% below its original plans and guided revenue for Q2 to be down 90% from the same quarter of last year. Meanwhile, United Airlines ($UAL) on Friday announced that it was cutting roughly 80% of its capacity for April and estimated a 30% year-over-year decline in fourth quarter revenue. In addition, JetBlue ($JBLU) CEO Robin Hayes said Friday that the company was parking over 100 aircraft and cut its April schedule by 70%. In the midst of all these announcements, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway ($BRK.A) disclosed that it had sold 12.9M shares of Delta and 2.3M shares of Southwest ($LUV) last week. Alaska Air ($ALK) also said today that it expects to lower April and May capacity by 80%. Boeing ($BA) announced that it is extending the temporary suspension of production operations at all Puget Sound area and Moses Lake sites until further notice due to the coronavirus outbreak. In other planemaker news, Airbus ($EADSY) announced today that it will pause production in Mobile, Alabama this week. Zoom Video ($ZM) shares fell 4.1% as reports on data privacy and security concerns surrounding the videoconferencing service continue to mount. CNBC reported Friday that Zoom said in an email that its waiting room feature will now be turned on by default, meaning that the meeting organizer will be able to control which participants can enter a videoconference. Following that change, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan told the Wall Street Journal that he "really messed up" on security. In addition, the Washington Post reported over the weekend that several school districts, including New York City, are banning the use of Zoom for online learning, with NYC directing teachers to use Microsoft Teams ($MSFT) instead. This morning, Credit Suisse analyst Brad Zelnick downgraded Zoom Video to Underperform. Meanwhile, Facebook ($FB) announced that it is releasing new tools to help health researchers "track and combat" COVID-19. The new tools include new types of Disease Prevention Maps as well as a prompt on Facebook encouraging users in the U.S. to participate in a voluntary survey. Tyson Foods ($TSN) issued a statement saying its plants have experienced varying levels of production impact amid the coronavirus outbrea, adding that it has suspended operations at its Columbus Junction, Iowa pork plant due to more than two dozen cases of the virus involving team members at the facility. MAJOR MOVERS: Shares of Immunomedics ($IMMU) surged 99.8% higher after the company said its late-stage ASCENT study would be halted on positive data in breast cancer. Separately, the company announced that Harout Semerjian has been appointed as president and chief executive officer. Among the other noteworthy gainers was Wayfair ($W), which jumped 41.2% after saying it expects to exceed its Q1 revenue growth guidance. In addition, Carnival Cruise ($CCL) shares were 20.3% higher after the Public Investment Fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia disclosed an 8.2% stake in the company. Among the notable losers was Luckin Coffee ($LK), which fell 18.4% after Goldman Sachs said that lenders are selling up to 76.35M shares in the Chinese coffee company. Also lower was Simply Good Foods ($SMPL), which declined 8.7% after reporting quarterly results.Source: (Briefing.com)(theFly.com) Disclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. 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