It’s Monday, the second day of October trading, and I have the perfect game plan to get us through the week — it benefits from the news bomb about Merck’s new antiviral pill for COVID-19.
September was not a great month for investors… We saw the S&P 500 trade down 4.76% while the Nasdaq fell over 5%.
The Russell 2000 sank 3.06% and the beloved Cathie Wood fund, ARK Innovation ETF (NYSEArca: ARKK), tanked almost 10%.
The VIX, or volatility index, exploded by about 44% — which I expect to go even higher in the fall (it’s up another 12% through Monday afternoon) — and the 10-year Treasury yield went back above the 150 level (or 1.5%).
The first trading session for October, this past Friday, made up for it…
Merck’s Antiviral Pill for COVID-19 Causes Breakouts in These Names
On Oct. 1, Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) came out with a game changer for the entire global economy, and the stock gapped up accordingly.
The big pharmacy giant saw its shares rise by 9% ahead of the opening bell that morning.
Merck has been developing an antiviral pill, molnupiravir, people can take orally that’ll cut the likelihood of getting hospitalized for COVID-19 by about half.
That’s huge news — and a solid reason why the shares keep rising.
And it’s already affecting other areas on the stock market.
Looking at the travel stock names, like American Airlines Group Inc. (Nasdaq: AAL) and Marriott International Inc. (Nasdaq: MAR), you’ll notice that it’s already helping cause moves to the upside.
And I expect more breakouts to happen soon.
October is going to be all about playing the reopening names as Merck’s announcement boosts investor sentiment on our recovering economy.
But I also expect some extreme selling in technology to continue throughout this month, and for oil to make new highs.
Luckily, on Tuesday I’m releasing nine — yes, nine — new trades I put together that should allow us to profit in October, no matter what the stock market conditions become…
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Check out the video below to learn more about my October trading game plan and Merck’s new antiviral pill for COVID-19.
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