Morning Report 21 Apr 20: Markets retreat as investors gasp at plunging oil prices

US sharemarkets fell on Monday as crude oil prices plunged, while investors turned cautious over what is expected to be a disappointing week for earnings and economic data. Energy sector shares fell by 3.3%, led lower by Exxon Mobil (-4.7%) and Chevron (-4.1%). Boeing (-6.8%) was the worst performer on the Dow Jones Index. Shares of United Airlines fell by 4.4% after it warned of a US$2.1 billion pre-tax loss in the first quarter. But "stay-at-home" stocks Amazon.com (+0.8%), Netflix (+3.4%) and Roku (+2.6%) all climbed. The Dow Jones index closed lower by 592 points or 2.4%. The S&P500 index fell by 1.8% and the Nasdaq index fell by 89 points or 1.0%.

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