Brussels Attack
Travel stocks wavered while defense contractor stocks reacted positively after the deadly terrorist attacks in Brussels this morning.
Stifel notes:
Three explosions in Brussels – two at the airport and another an hour later at a subway station – have left at least 26 people dead. Prime Minister Charles Michel called the apparent coordinated terrorist attacks “a violent and cowardly” assault as he stepped up security to the country’s highest alert level. European equities are in the red as fears of terrorism and reminders of last year’s Paris attacks are reignited. The Euro Stoxx is down 0.6% as of 9am ET.
JPMorgan’s trading desk told clients:
– the big news this morning was the tragic attacks in Brussels although US equities are demonstrating impressive resilience in light of the violence (the SP futures hit a low at 2028 at 4:30amET but have since bounced ~20 points; the SPX cash touched ~2040 at 9:51amET but is nearly ~10 points off that low, essentially unchanged on the day). In addition to Brussels, investors are focused on the flash PMIs and while those numbers don’t seem to be dramatically shifting the economic narrative the Richmond Fed, while normally not a critical figure, is the latest very strong regional Fed survey for Mar. Company-specific news was very quiet out in the last 12-18 hours.
See the visualizations below which illustrate the losses in travel sector stocks and gains in defense contractor stocks.
Brussels Attack
Airline Stocks Down Following Brussels Attacks
Hotel Stocks Down Following Brussels Attacks
Travel Sites and Cruise Stocks Down Following Brussels Attacks
Defense Contractors Rally Following Brussels Attacks
