MARKETS RISE

’Raw optimism’ fuels worldwide rise, but it’s not likely sustainable.

Stock rebounded from sharp losses last week as the rise in the number of new cases in the U.S. appeared to slow down. The Dow Jones industrial average closed 1,627.46 points higher,

Investors grabbed hold of a few glimmers of hope Monday that the coronavirus pandemic could be slowing and sent stocks surging in a worldwide rally, capped by a 7% leap for the U.S. market.

The number of new coronavirus cases is dropping in the European hotspots of Italy and Spain. The center of the U.S. outbreak, New York, also reported its number of daily deaths has been effectively flat for two days.

The gains accelerated throughout the day, and markets in Europe and Asia rose nearly as much. In another sign that investors are feeling a bit less pessimistic about the economy’s path, they sold bonds. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose for the first time in four days.

“We’re running on raw optimism, maybe that’s the best way to put it,” said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading and derivatives at Schwab Center for Financial Research.

“The virus is not everything, it’s the only thing, and nothing else really matters” to the markets, Frederick said, particularly in a week that is relatively light on economic reports.

The S&P 500 climbed 7%, and nearly all the stocks in the index were higher. It more than recovered all its losses from the prior week, when the government reported a record number of layoffs sweeping the economy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot up 7.7% and the Nasdaq rose 7.3%.

“It’s not unusual, if you look back historically, within bear markets to have rallies,” said Nela Richardson, investment strategist at Edward Jones. “I wouldn’t

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index surged 4.2%, South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.9%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2.2%.

In Europe, Germany’s DAX rose 5.8% and France’s CAC 40 jumped 4.6%. The FTSE 100 in London rose 3.1%.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 0.66% from 0.58% late Friday.

Crude oil fell. Benchmark U.S. crude fell $2.26, or 8%, to settle as $26.08 a barrel after surging nearly $7 last week.

BEN SKLAR / THE NEW YORK TIMES The financial district in lower Manhattan is nearly deserted Monday, but U.S. stocks rallied and global markets surged, with investors looking to signs that the coronavirus outbreak is peaking in some of the world’s worst-hit areas.