Wall Street up as recovery overshadows virus worries

Stocks surged on Wall Street in morning trading on Tuesday, driving the S&P 500 to its highest level in nearly three months, as hopes for economic recovery overshadow worries about the coronavirus pandemic.

The S&P 500 was up two per cent to 3,015 points. It’s the first time the benchmark index has been above the 3,000-point mark since March 5, before the widespread business shutdowns aimed at slowing the spread of the outbreak sent the US economy into a sharp skid.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 667 points, or 2.7 per cent, to 25,141. It’s the first time the Dow is above 25,000 points since March 10. The Nasdaq rose 1.3 per cent and the Russell 2000 index of small companies gained 3.8 per cent. Financials, technology and industrial stocks powered much of the broad gains.

The post-Memorial Day rally followed a strong rise in global markets as more nations push to open their economies. The S&P 500 was coming off a solid week and is on track for a second straight month of gains. The index remains down 11.2 per cent from its all-time high in February.

Bond yields were broadly higher, in another sign of optimism. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, a benchmark for interest rates on many consumer loans, rose to 0.70 per cent from 0.66 per cent late Friday.

Oil prices rose. Benchmark US crude oil was up 1.4 per cent to $33.69 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international standard, was up 0.7 per cent to $36.37 a barrel.