The Dow Jones industrial average shot up nearly 600 points Tuesday, about 2.3 percent.
Stocks roared Tuesday coming off the holiday weekend, as the national shutdown continues to unwind, more drug companies chase coronavirus vaccines and the New York Stock Exchange reopened its floor to traders for the first time in two months.
The Dow Jones industrial average shot up nearly 600 points Tuesday, about 2.3 percent, on the heels of its 3.3 percent gain last week.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was up 57 points, about 1.9 percent. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq showed a 1.6 percent gain. All three indexes are coming off strong gains last week and are positive for May.
“With more signs of the worst of the virus being behind us investors are beginning to focus on more countries reopening and the lifting of travel bans around the world,” said Torsten Slok, chief economist for Deutsche Bank Securities in an email. “More signs of reopening and more signs of travel bans being lifted creates more clarity for markets.”
Dow component Merck was up in early trading after the pharmaceutical giant announced several advances against the coronavirus, including teaming with another company on the development of a vaccine as well as new treatments for virus patients.
Merck joins several companies racing to develop a vaccine to stop the disease, which has claimed nearly 100,000 American lives.
Maryland-based Novavax also reported Monday that it has entered human study for a vaccine virus. Massachusetts-based Moderna last week reported that it had found good results from a small, early trial for its own vaccine.
