Stocks Fall, Dow Plunges Over 400 Points As Reopening Of The Economy Continues

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.9%, over 400 points, on Tuesday, while the S&P 500 lost just over 2% and the Nasdaq was down 2.1%.

Stocks opened 0.5% higher, before turning negative in the afternoon and falling sharply in the last hour of trading.

House Democrats released their latest coronavirus relief bill, totaling more than $3 trillion, with a vote scheduled for Friday. The package includes federal aid to states, more stimulus checks, hazard pay for essential works, funding for testing and more unemployment insurance.

The major averages declined after Republican Senator Lindsey Graham pushed legislation to demand China either cooperate with an investigation into the origins of coronavirus or face sanctions.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned a Senate committee on Tuesday that the U.S. does not yet have the coronavirus outbreak “completely under control” and that the national death toll is “likely higher” than current levels.

U.S. consumer prices in April—the latest slew of sobering economic data, showed a drop of 0.8% last month, the most since 2008, according to the Labor Department.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), Wall Street’s fear gauge, has come way down since the market’s wild months in March and April, however: After peaking at 82.7 in late March—amid the height of the coronavirus selloff—it’s now down to 26.4.