Dow Reclaims 26K

On Friday, Wall Street investors decided to be optimistic again about the coronavirus recovery. The Dow rose 369 points to 26,075, the S&P 500 rose 32 points to 3,185, and the Nasdaq rose 69 points to 10,617. All the indexes posted gains for the week. The increases come despite record increases in COVID-19 cases in the US, notes the Wall Street Journal. Something that helped on Friday: Gilead Sciences reported more good news about its drug remdesivir, saying that new data suggests it can reduce deaths in severely ill patients by about 60%, per the AP and CNBC.

Investors also seem optimistic that the Federal Reserve will step up with more stimulus packages if the economy worsens. “The market is still largely addicted to stimulus,” Scott Martin of Kingsview Wealth Management tells the Journal. “Markets are able to take the coronavirus news in stride because of this backstop.” (More stock market stories.)