Dow Jones Stock Market News: Airlines Fall on Ebola Fears, Some Drugmakers Rise
The first Ebola case was reported in the U.S. and that sent shares of major airlines down Wednesday. That is just one major industry that fell on the first day of the fourth quarter which saw the Dow Jones falling by over 230 points.
With global fears of Ebola, tensions in Ukraine and Russia, protests in China, and ISIS, the stock market responded by falling heavily.
"It's hard to get constructive with headlines of airstrikes in different parts of the world, so there are some doubts about what the economic environment looks like, particularly as we end the asset-purchase program," said PNC's Jim Dunigan, referring to the Federal Reserve's bond buys, which are on track to conclude later this month.
Some drugmakers and biotech companies like Tekmira Pharmaceuticals and Sarepta Therapeutics rose Wednesday. These companies are involved in trying to develop Ebola drugs.
In contrast, Delta Air Lines as well as Jet Blue both fell due to the uncertainity of Ebola in the U.S. and the impact it could have on air travel.
"Will somebody decide not to go to Dallas? Maybe. I don't see that as a lasting situation," Dunigan added. Dallas was the first confirmed case of Ebola in the U.S.
Tuesday's drop in the Dow was 266 points and Wednesday's added to that fall. The Dow now sits well below the 17,000 mark at 16,804.71.
What do you think about the stock market's recent slide? Do you have trust in the markets? Leave us a comment below and let us know how you feel.
The CBOE volatility index or the VIX rose once again Wednesday. This is a measure of investor uncertainity. It rose another 2.45 percent Wednesday. Unlike stocks, when the VIX rises it is a bad indicator to the markets.
"In the here and now, there are too many global-macro concerns for investors to have confidence," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities, listing worries about ISIS, Ukraine and Russia, the slowdown in China "and ebola, which is causing things like airline stocks to go down."
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