Share

Wall Street trading halted after deep losses

accreditation
Wall Street (Photo: AFP)
Wall Street (Photo: AFP)

Trading on Wall Street was halted immediately after the opening bell Monday, as stocks posted steep losses following emergency moves by the Federal Reserve to try to avert a recession due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Just after the opening bell, the S&P 500 was at 2,490.47, a drop of 8.1 percent and beyond the seven percent loss that automatically triggers a 15-minute trading halt.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 9.7 percent, or around 2,250 points, to 20,935.16, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 6.1 percent to 7,392.73.

On a Sunday, the US central bank announced an emergency interest rate cut of a full percentage point, which brought rates to between 0 percent to 0.25 percent. The Fed will also buy $500 billion of Treasury securities and $200 billion of mortgage-backed securities to bolster the market.

Bit this has not done anything to calm panic in the market – and with rates now close to 0%, investors are worried about where future help will come from.

“Not only has the Federal Reserve thrown all of its tools out of the toolbox to help combat the economic pressures that the coronavirus will bring to the world economy, it has done so by firing all of its guns, grenades as well as bazookas at the problem and it can’t be helped to hold concern following this move regarding what ammunition does the Fed truly have left,” Jameel Ahmad, Global Head of Currency Strategy and Market Research at FXTM, said.

By late afternoon on Monday, the JSE's all share index was down more than 11%.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.92
+0.1%
Rand - Pound
23.88
+0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.41
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.32
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
+0.1%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders