Equity markets in the US climbed to their most impressive peaks in months as states slowly reopened and traders returned to the trading floor on Wall Street for the first time since it was closed down on March 23 to prevent the coronavirus disease from spreading.
The Dow Jones Industrial took back the 25,000 level before it pulled back and settled 530 points, or 2.18 percent. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 ended up higher by 1.23 percent and 0.17 percent respectively, helping to build on last week's momentum of over 3 percent on global market averages.
Financials got a major lift after JPMorgan chief executive officer Jamie Dimon issued some reassuring remarks about the post-pandemic economic recovery and his bank's current status.
Major American stock benchmarks rallied higher early Wednesday, despite the ravaged condition of the US economy and escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing as market capitalists kept their sights on government actions to restart more states for business.
The US central bank on Wednesday said economic activity through May 18 was down in most of its 12 regions, in the midst of widespread jobless rates and the difficulty of sending people back to work during the global health crisis, as employees feared getting infected by the virus, faced very limited access to child care and received unemployment claims, the latest Beige Book report of the Federal Reserve disclosed.
Late Tuesday, the Dow Jones advanced by as much as 711 points before it settled 530 points, or 2.8 percent, to wrap up sessions just under the 25,000 price mark. The S&P 500 was up 1.2 percent, but could not reclaim the 3000 price region. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lagged with a slight 0.2 percent increase after failing to sustain its recent gains.
Around a quarter of traders buckled down to work at the New York Stock Exchange following a two-month hiatus because of the COVID-19. Those who returned had to don facemasks, practice social distancing and were divided by Plexiglas. Traders were also asked to sign a waiver that limited the stock exchange's pandemic liability.
Airline companies also noted some positive signs as the volume of travelers passing through airport checkpoints reached 348,673 late on Friday, the highest figure since March 22, and Spain reported the country will open its borders to tourists starting July 1.
Meanwhile, New York Fed President John Williams disclosed the central bank was seriously considering about the possibility of hitting bond yields in order to keep US borrowing costs low.
