The coronavirus pandemic remains one of the most important topics for more than 9 months. Moreover, the pandemic is not over yet and it is hard to determine how long it would take to stabilize the situation. Interestingly, stocks in Japan led gains among Asia-Pacific markets on November 24. Investors in the region reacted to more positive information regarding the coronavirus vaccine. Another news that also affected stocks came from the U.S. Importantly, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden decided to nominate Janet Yellen as a Treasury secretary.
Interestingly, the Nikkei 225 jumped 2.5% to close at 26,165.59. At the same time, the Topix index added 2.03% on the day to 1,762.40. As a reminder, markets in Japan were closed on Monday for a holiday.
Moreover, South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.58% to finish its trading day at 2,617.76.
Also, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 1.26% at 6,644.10.
However, mainland Chinese markets saw losses on the day. The Shanghai Composite dropped 0.34% to about 3,402.82. In the meantime, the Shenzhen Composite fell 0.34% to about 3,402.82. Also, the Shenzhen Component declined 0.378% to around 13,902.54.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index finished its trading day 0.39% higher at 26,588.20.
Stocks and coronavirus
It is not surprising that investors are monitoring the situation regarding the coronavirus vaccine and Tuesday was not an exception. Interestingly, investors continued to monitor positive momentum surrounding the race for a coronavirus vaccine. As can be seen from the information released by AstraZeneca, the interim analysis showed its coronavirus vaccine has an average efficacy of 70% in protecting against the virus.
People should keep in mind that, in recent weeks other companies also released positive information. Based on the information provided by Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna their respective Covid-19 vaccine candidates were about 95% effective.
The coronavirus pandemic continues to dominate the headlines, and it could take several months to distribute the vaccines approved by authorities. Moreover, government officials around the world are working hard to cope with the pandemic. It is not an easy task as can be seen from the examples of European countries as well as the U.S.
Furthermore, governments have to support companies that could go bankrupt without financial aid. Unfortunately, millions of people across Europe and the U.S. lost their jobs. In the case of the airline industry, it would take a lot of time to return to pre-coronavirus levels. Authorities should join forces with companies to revive the economy.
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