The daily business briefing: June 25, 2020

Record coronavirus infections drag down Wall Street, Bayer agrees to $10.9 billion Roundup settlement, and more

Coronavirus testing.
(Image credit: OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)

1. Stocks struggle as coronavirus surge dampens hopes for economic recovery

U.S. stock index futures fell early Thursday but struggled to rebound as one-day new coronavirus infections surged to a new record. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were down slightly after fighting back from deeper losses several hours before the opening bell. Nasdaq Composite futures were flat. The Dow plunged by 2.7 percent on Wednesday as concerns mounted about rising infection rates in numerous states. The S&P 500 dropped by 2.6 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq, fresh off a record high, fell by 2.2 percent. "All the hopes of investors looking for a better economy to improve the bottom lines of companies shut down in the recession have been dashed," said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at MUFG.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.