Global stock funds see record inflows on Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine

The week is the biggest for stock inflows since March '18

For investors trying to gauge what's most important in predicting the direction of the stock market these days, hands down, it’s the potential arrival of a COVID-19 vaccine.

RECORD WEEK FOR EQUITY INFLOWS $44.5B 

Inflows into global stocks hit an all-time record this week, netting $44.5 billion as tracked by Michael Hartnett and his team at Bank of America Global Analytics.

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U.S. stocks grabbed the lion’s share with $32 billion, the second-largest on record. Emerging Markets saw $6.5 billion, the fifth-largest ever, while technology, energy, and financials also benefited along with gold.

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“With the COVID vaccinations now being a possibility, that will raise sentiment in the market generally and that’s globally, not only in the U.S.,” said Mobius Capital founder Mark Mobius, who was one of the world’s most renowned emerging market investors during his tenure at Templeton.

TREASURY OUTFLOWS 

As cash flowed into stocks, it flowed out of bonds, with U.S. Treasuries seeing redemptions of $4 billion, the largest in at least six months.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
PFE PFIZER INC. 28.57 +0.22 +0.78%
BNTX BIONTECH SE 122.68 +2.88 +2.40%

Prompting the big moves was a Monday announcement from Pfizer and BioNTech that their vaccine was 90% effective in trials. BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin followed up on Thursday, telling FOX Business the vaccine has longevity once it's administered.

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"There’s a good chance that the vaccine not only is protective but could protect from infection or reinfection for a significant period of time," said Sahin. "I personally expect that a vaccine could protect us ... for at least one year. If we learn that we need to re-immunize, we could do that after one year."

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Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar is also confident the distribution pipeline to deliver the vaccine will work efficiently, allowing Americans access via their local pharmacies.

“Ninety percent of Americans live within five miles of a pharmacy,” Azar told FOX Business. “So we want to meet people where they are. This is typical of President Trump using the private sector's expertise to get the job done” he added.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
CVS CVS HEALTH CORP. 64.60 +1.67 +2.65%
RAD NO DATA AVAILABLE - - -
WBA WALGREENS BOOTS ALLIANCE INC. 8.72 +0.05 +0.58%
KR THE KROGER CO. 55.88 +0.28 +0.49%
WMT WALMART INC. 80.92 +0.50 +0.62%

CVS, Kroger, Rite Aid, Walgreens and Walmart are among the corporations that will drive access.

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