S&P 500 tumbles as US at risk of more “suffering and death”

Markets were mixed on Tuesday.

The S&P 500 tumbled 2.1 percent and the Nikkei 225 fell 0.1 percent but the STOXX Europe 600 rose 0.3 percent.

“The economic worries are still front and center here. Even though there are reopenings, they’re going to go slowly,” said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Advisory Group.

Indeed, Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the US, warned the Senate Health Committee that the US could face more “suffering and death” if states start to reopen too quickly.

“It’s hard to see equities powering further higher,” Rob Carnell, chief economist and head of research for Asia-Pacific at ING. “Any further dollops of stimulus are gonna be fairly marginal.”

Meanwhile, the US stock market's rebound from its March low has brought it back into expensive territory. According to Refinitiv, the S&P 500 now trades at 22.5 times projected earnings, the most expensive valuation since October 2000 during the bursting of the dotcom bubble.