Stock market has worst week since October amid Reddit frenzy
29 January 2021
Wall Street had its worst week since October as day traders bid up stocks for GameStop, AMC and others that gained popularity on Reddit.
Details: The S&P 500 fell more than 1.9% on Friday. All of the major averages fell more than 3% this week.
Why it matters: The broader market sell-off comes amid historic trading activity in a basket of so-called "meme stocks."
- GameStop's shares jumped 400% this week and 1,600% this month, while AMC gained 280% this week.
- Wall Street short-sellers, i.e. those betting these stock prices will fall, suffered losses as high as $19 billion, per the New York Times.
Between the lines: The markets are still near all-time highs, having fully recovered from last year’s coronavirus sell-off.
What to watch: Investors are also increasingly concerned about the coronavirus vaccine rollout as shortages become more apparent around the world.
Go deeper: SEC says it will "closely review" restrictions on Reddit-fueled stocks
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.