• US markets roared higher to push the benchmark indices back into positive territory for the month-to-date - Dow surged +912-points or +3.85%, with all but one of the index’s 30 constituents advancing. Boeing Co (+up +12.87%) was the leading index performer, while Merck & Co (down -0.10%) was the only index member to close lower. The broader S&P500 soared +3.15% (to 2,953.91)to settle at its highest level since 6 March, with Energy (up +7.5%) and Industrials (+6.6%) leading all eleven primary sectors higher. Airline stocks rallied, with Delta Air Lines (up +13.91%) saying it would resume flying several major routes in June. Separately, data from the Transportation Security Administration showed air passenger traffic had risen for four straight weeks. American Airlines Group Inc rose +9.18% and United Airlines Holdings Inc +21.13%. General Motors Co (up +9.63%) and Ford Motor Co (+8.37%) rose as both started to reopen their North American factories in a push to restart work in an industry that accounts for about 6% of U.S. economic activity and employs nearly 1M people across the country. The S&P 500 growth index has outperformed the S&P value index by ~4% this month. The NASDAQ rallied +2.44%. Moderna Inc surged +19.96% after the company said its experimental COVID-19 vaccine showed promising results in a small early-stage trial. The data comes from eight people who took part in a 45-subject safety trial that kicked off in March. The Moderna vaccine is one of more than 100 under development intended to protect against the novel coronavirus that has infected more than 4.7M people globally and killed over 315,000. The Dow and S&P 500 both recorded their biggest one-day gains since 6 April, while the Nasdaq posted its best rally since 29 April.
