The market was halted at the open as the S&P falls 7%. It will reopen in 15 minutes and try again.
Stocks plunged across the board. Giant exhibitor AMC Entertainment saw a 20% decline as theaters in major markets like Los Angeles and New York were forced to close.
The company Monday additional plans in markets where it is still operating: In addition to its previous commitment capping ticket availability to 50% normal seating capacity, the chain will also will further limit attendance for each showtime in all its open U.S. theaters to a maximum of 50 people. The CDC Sunday recommended a limitation on gatherings to a maximum of 50 people for two months.
AMC also said is complying with all governmental mandates to close certain theaters, restaurants or bars as may be applicable.
Sunday saw after a wave of state ordinances to close restaurants, bars, movie theaters, and schools districts across the country. New federal guidelines heightened the realization of what social distancing will look like in this country and how long it might last as infections continued to grow.
Announcements from California and New York came hand in hand with continued news of halts in TV and film productions and cancellations/postponements of industry events and attractions – the remaining ones that hadn’t yet been shuttered in a bloodbath over the previous two days as the nation attempts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The CDC’s website Sunday recommended all public gatherings be limited to 50 people for the next two months and reinforced the importance of social distancing the control the spread of infection.
The full-blow panic on financial market comes despite an extraordinary move by the Federal Reserve Sunday to slash interest rates to near zero and announced a major quantitative easing program to keep the economy running. It was expected to move aggressively, but not until its regularly scheduled meeting this week. The weekend announcement seemed to spook markets, which aren’t behaving logically at the moment.