Hurricane Sandy, which caused devastation up and down the East Coast, also triggered the closure of the US stock exchanges for two days. It marks the first time the NYSE has been closed for more than one day due to weather since 1888.
What can investors expect when they return to trading? Well, while the Nasdaq and NYSE have been closed for business, we have been able to track futures. On Tuesday, S&P index futures ended the session 0.2% higher. Meanwhile, European shares closed higher, helped by positive earnings reports.
It is certainly a disruption to have the US stock market closed for such an extended period of time. But I think investors can expect to find the market acting in much the same way it did last week, before the storm hit. Last week, the S&P 500 notched its biggest pullback since June, falling roughly 5% from its fall peak. Since peaking in September, US equities have traded lower.
What is causing this negative sentiment? A combination of events. First, the markets largely expected the Federal Reserve’s third round of quantitative easing, so stocks have not gotten the same boost as from previous announcements.