Stock Market Jumps to Near Record Highs on Vaccine News

During the 2020 election cycle, President Trump made an impassioned plea to those Americans who have money in the stock market:  If you don’t elect me, you’re going to see devastation on Wall Street.  The President warned of tanking 401K’s and economic catastrophe.

And that may very well have been what we saw on Monday morning, after the Associated Press declared Joe Biden the next President-elect of the United States.  Instead, the news of a major breakthrough in the search for a coronavirus vaccine boosted Wall Street’s outlook on the future.

Pfizer and BioNTech announced Monday their coronavirus vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 among those without evidence of prior infection, hailing the development as “a great day for science and humanity.”

“I think we can see light at the end of the tunnel,” Pfizer Chairman and CEO Dr. Albert Bourla told CNBC’s Meg Tirrell on “Squawk Box.” “I believe this is likely the most significant medical advance in the last 100 years, if you count the impact this will have in public health, global economy.”

The announcement comes as drugmakers and research centers scrambled to deliver a safe and effective vaccine to help bring an end to the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed over 1.2 million lives worldwide.

Scientists are hoping for a coronavirus vaccine that is at least 75% effective, while White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci has said one that is 50% or 60% effective would be acceptable.

Not only did Pfizer and the DOW Jones both make major gains, but leisure stocks such as Carnival Cruise Lines and the Walt Disney Company were juiced as well, as Americans look forward to being able to travel and gather safely in the not-so-distant future.