Dow dives 457 points as Fauci cautions against reopening the economy too early

• US stocks declined on Tuesday after Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned against reopening the US economy too soon.
• Dr. Fauci said on "consequences could be really serious" if reopening occurs too early, adding that "it will set you back."
• A measure of consumer prices excluding food and fuel posted the biggest monthly drop since 1957 in April.
• WTI crude oil futures climbed as much as 8.7%, to $26.23 per barrel.
• Read more on Business Insider.

US stocks declined on Tuesday, erasing gains from earlier in the day, after Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned against reopening the US economy too soon.

Fauci, the US's leading infectious-disease specialist and a key member of the White House's coronavirus task force, made his comments during a Senate testimony.

"Consequences could be really serious," Fauci said about an early reopening. "I feel if that occurs, there is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak that you might not be able to control."

He added: "In fact, paradoxically it will set you back — not only leading to some suffering and death that could be avoided but it could even set you back on the road on trying to get economic recovery."

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. ET market close on Tuesday:

• S&P 500: 2,870.12, down 2.1%
• Dow Jones industrial average: 23,764.78, down 1.9% (457 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 9,002.55, down 2.1%

Read more: MORGAN STANLEY: Buy these 20 stocks built to profit from a mounting inflation comeback that will alter the investing landscape

Oil prices climbed, with West Texas Intermediate crude rising as much as 8.7%, to $26.23 per barrel, following further production cuts from Saudi Arabia announced on Monday. Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed 3.6%, to $30.70 per barrel, at intraday highs. President Trump praised the rally, saying it makes US energy companies "look very good again."

Saudi Aramco, the most valuable company in the world, said on Tuesday that it would maintain its dividend, even after profits fell 25% in the first quarter.

Read more: Bill Miller's record-setting fund beat the market for 15 straight years. He explains why he's still bullish on airlines, even after Warren Buffett abandoned the industry twice.

A survey from the National Federation of Independent Business found that while small businesses expected their sales to continue to slump during the coronavirus pandemic, they thought that the US economy would rebound in the next six months.

Still, data has continued to show the impact of the coronavirus lockdowns on the economy. A measure of consumer prices excluding food and fuel dropped the most since 1957 in April. The basket of prices including the volatile food and fuel numbers slumped the most since 2008.

"While markets are unlikely to retest their recent lows given continued central bank and fiscal support, the economic recovery will likely be extremely weak and the danger of a second wave of infections remains," Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Global Investors, told Business Insider. "This means that stocks are still quite vulnerable."

As the US weighs reopening, other countries, including China, Germany, and Russia, have reported second waves of cases.

Read more: A group of healthcare stocks is enjoying the market's biggest post-crash comeback and has returned 1,000% over the past decade. One investment firm says there's even more upside — and shares 3 companies it's buying.

Read the original article on Business Insider