Magnifique: Investors applaud French vote with stock rally

Heightened optimism about future of EU fuels worldwide surge

NEW YORK — Vive le rally. U.S. stocks joined a worldwide surge higher Monday after the first round of France’s presidential election raised expectations that the European Union will hold together. A candidate seen as probusiness won the most votes Sunday, and many investors expect him to win a runoff against the remaining anti-EU candidate, which is set for May 7.

Prices for gold, Treasurys and other investments that signal fear in the market all sank, while a popular gauge for measuring investor fear eased by the biggest margin since the summer of 2011.

“It’s good news, and now investors have a reason to focus on the fundamentals in Europe, which are strong,” said Luca Paolini, chief strategist at Pictet Asset Management, a U.K.-based firm that manages $165 billion in client assets.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index jumped 25.46 points, or 1.1 percent, to 2,374.15. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 216.13, or 1.1 percent, to 20,763.89, and the Nasdaq composite gained 73.30, or 1.2 percent, to 5,983.82.

Coming into Sunday’s election in France, several candidates railed against the European Union, one of the world’s dominant trading partners. A victory for one of those candidates would have followed the path set by last year’s Brexit vote by Britain to exit the European Union and the U.S. election of President Donald Trump as