Stocks were generally higher after the European Union reached a $2 trillion deal to rebuild the continent’s economy, and U.S. congressional leaders supported a new round of stimulus checks to counter the COVID-19 recession.
The S&P 500 was up 0.5% to 3,266.46 during midday trading.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1% to 26,984.04.
The Nasdaq slid 0.5% to 10,709.57.
The yield on a 10-year Treasury bond fell 3.7% to 0.597%.
The price of gold increased 1.4% to $1,841.90.
The price for a barrel of oil rose 2.4% to $41.79.
FINANCE
Local bank stocks rose on the increased signs of financial support for the economic recovery.
• Irvine-based First Foundation Inc. (Nasdaq: FFWM was up 7.6% to $16.05 per share for a market cap of $716.7 million, after beating second-quarter earnings and revenue estimates.
• Pacific Premier Bancorp. Inc. (Nasdaq: PPBI) also of Irvine rose $5.3% to $20.67 per share for a market cap of almost $2 billion
• Banc of California Inc. (NYSE:BANC) in Santa Ana rose 7% to $10.27 a share for a market cap of $513.1 million
• Pacific Mercantile Bancorp (Nasdaq:PMBC) in Costa Mesa increased 7.2% to $3.86 per share for a market cap of $91.1 million.
HEALTHCARE
Irvine-based diagnostics firm Biomerica Inc. (Nasdaq: BMRA) fell 7% to $11.20 per share for a market cap of $126.1 million. Analyst site Marketingsentinel.com said earlier in the day that Biomerica “is scoring comparatively lower than the scores of other players of the relevant industry.” Shares in the company had enjoyed a 70% price surge in the four months through through Monday after the firm introduced its 10-minute test that determines if a person has the antibodies to the coronavirus.
