Business: • Market defences

Netflix, Clorox and Gilead Sciences are among the mere handful of winners in the S&P

500 during a market rout this week, as investors back companies most likely to weather economic fallout from a potential pandemic.

The S&P 500 has dipped into correction territory just six days after securing a record high, reflecting mounting worries over the spread of coronavirus. The latest sell-off extended the benchmark index’s decline this week to more than 8 per cent, which would mark its steepest drop since the financial crisis.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals has been the top performer with a

10.4 per cent rise, as the company races to develop treatments for coronavirus. Regeneron this month said it was expanding a partnership with the US Department of Health and Human Services and treatments could be made available for testing or “compassionate use” within a few months.

Shares in Gilead, whose antiviral drug remdesivir is in a clinical trial for the treatment of Covid-19, have risen 5.9 per cent.

Clorox, known for its disinfecting wipes and other cleaning products, and CME Group are each up more than 3 per cent.

Netflix is another unsurprising member of the winners’ circle, with the streaming video giant positioned to remain a fixture on consumers’ screens if offices or schools are forced to close. Shares are up 0.8 per cent this week and about 18 per cent yearto-date.

Although they are down for the week, Steris and Quest Diagnostics have notably outperformed the broader market. Steris, which makes sterilisation equipment and other products for medical providers, is down just 0.6 per cent. Quest, a clinical lab, has fallen by the same margin.

Consumer staples, healthcare and real estate have outperformed the benchmark S&P 500, while energy has registered the steepest decline at 15 per cent.