CNBC’s Jim Cramer came out on Thursday bluntly blaming world governments for the market sell-off and slamming heads of state for failing to get a grip on the spread of a variant of Covid-19.
Major US stock averages all fell nearly 1% during the session, dragging the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes from record highs. Health concerns also caused bond yields to decline to levels not seen since February.
The declines can be attributed to the Delta trunk, which is rapidly spreading around the world, Cramer said.
“I put this sell-off straight into the laps of politicians around the world because we have a failure in global leadership at the moment,” said the Mad Money presenter.
“Here in America we do a much better job vaccinating people than in most other countries, but we screwed it up when we volunteered the vaccination process.”
Cramer criticized that the US Food and Drug Administration had not yet given coronavirus vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech full approval. Three vaccines, including a one-shot solution from Johnson & Johnson, have been approved by the agency for emergency response to fight the health crisis and given to millions across the country.
CNBC Pro’s Stock Picks and Investment Trends:
Pfizer filed for FDA approval of its vaccine in May, followed by Moderna filing its own product in June.
“You might think this is a formality, but so many Americans don’t trust vaccines and the lack of FDA approval certainly doesn’t help,” Cramer said. “I urge the FDA to explain themselves and their foolhardy behavior.”
The Delta variant, which was first discovered in India and is rapidly spreading around the world, is now the dominant tribe affecting people in the United States in communities where vaccination rates lag behind.
Health experts say internal mask regulations and public health measures may need to be reintroduced to slow the spread of the Delta variant in the country.
“If we can get a grip on the COVID variants by forcing people to vaccinate, I think bond yields and the stock market will rise again,” Cramer said. “I don’t see much hope of speeding up vaccinations without either paying people money or forcing them, which is not going to happen in this country.