With both Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech’s (BNTX) reporting that their vaccine candidates have been more than 90% successful in treating COVID-19 patients during clinical trials, stock futures have enjoyed a higher opening, thus encouraging investors to snatch up these assets.
This boost to the market, which occurred on Monday, has helped boost both the S&P 500 and Dow Jones to intraday records, with the Dow managing to add 1,610 points (or 5.7%). UBS Head of Equity Derivatives Research Stuart Kaiser expressed his surprise to Yahoo Finance, explaining that the efficacy which resulted from these results was higher than predicted by analysts.
Thanks to the renewed hope for finding a vaccine that was provided by Pfizer and BioNTech, shares of cruise lines, airlines, and lodging companies have enjoyed moderate increases as well. This is mostly driven by a wave of higher consumer confidence in such stocks.
According to a broad range of investors, politicians, and company executives, the development and release of an effective vaccine are the primary factors in reopening the economy and driving a sustained recovery.
Some analysts have warned against too much confidence, however, as even the frontrunners in the race to a vaccine will not be able to release their solution for at least a few months.
