US OPEN: Wall Street opens lower as Covid fears intensify

• Stocks tumble as Covid-19 cases in Europe are on the rise

• U.S. jobless claims worse than expected

• Morgan Stanley (MS.US) with strong bond trading results

American stocks opened lower on Thursday as coronavirus fears intensify in many European countries. U.S. investors still focus on stimulus package negotiations as Steven Mnuchin is set to speak to Nancy Pelosi today. The Treasury Secretary once again stressed that he and Trump were committed to keep working toward a deal. U.S. jobless claims rose to 898k while markets anticipated that they would drop from 845k to 825k. Meanwhile Kamala Harris, vice presidential nominee, has halted travel as she tested positive for Covid-19. 

Following a rapid sell-off on global stock markets, US500 managed to bounce from the 50-period moving average (purple line, H4 time frame), which served as a support. Should sellers regain control again, the 3,420 pts area might provide some support (one could spot some price reactions there in the past). On the other hand, the 3,500 pts barrier could be regarded as the nearest target for market bulls. Source: xStation5

S&P 500 top movers at 2:32 pm BST. Source: Bloomberg

Morgan Stanley (MS.US) managed to outperform analysts’ estimates in the third-quarter. The bank reported earnings of $1.66 a share, beating the consensus forecast of $1.28 a share. The company generated revenue of $11.7 billion (+16% y/y), higher than expected as well. Earnings were fuelled by strong bond trading results

Alcoa Corp (AA.US), aluminum producer, plummeted more than 7% in pre-market as the firm expects a decline in the crucial Aluminum segment in Q4. In the third-quarter the company lost $1.17 per share while analysts expected that the loss would be even higher ($1.38). Revenue was above consensus estimate as well. 

BioNTech (BNTX.US) CEO told Bloomberg News that the late-stage trial of its Covid-19 vaccine candidate remains on track. Side effects among participants are supposed to be in line with those seen in earlier studies. The company has been developing the vaccine with Pfizer (PFE.US)

BioNTech (BNTX.US) stock bounced from the 23.6% Fibo retracement. Provided that sellers regain control again, the $83.60 level might be regarded as the next support level (according to 1:1 structure). Should price break below that barrier, a downward movement might actually accelerate. Source: xStation5

United Airlines (UAL.US) posted a third-quarter loss of $1.8 billion or $8.16 per share (against expected $7.53 per share) even though revenue matched Wall Street estimates. Nevertheless, the firm said it cut its daily cash burn in the third quarter to $25 million a day, down from $40 million in the previous quarter. United Airlines had $19.4 billion in liquidity at the end of the quarter.