Dow Is Having a Big Day

Index up nearly 500 at midday
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Feb 4, 2020 11:02 AM CST
At Midday, Dow Up Nearly 500 Points
Yvette Arrington, with the New York Stock Exchange, monitors trading activity, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Technology companies and banks led a broad rally for US stocks in early trading Tuesday as China took more steps to soften the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak, per the AP. Just before noon, the Dow was up more than 480 points, or 1.7%, per MarketWatch. The S&P 500 was similarly up 1.6% and the Nasdaq 1.9%. Investors were snapping up tech stocks, which are often sensitive to China’s economic health because of ties to supply chains and sales. Apple rose 2.3% and chipmaker Nividia climbed 1.9%. Banks and health care stocks also made big gains: Citigroup rose 2.2% and UnitedHealth Group climbed 3%.

Wall Street is also assessing a busy round of corporate earnings. Ralph Lauren jumped 6.2% and Clorox gained 4.4% on solid financial results. Google’s parent, Alphabet, gave investors a disappointing revenue report and was among the few companies to slip in the early going. Previously, markets in Europe and Asia also rose. The Shanghai Composite, for example, closed 1.3% higher and regained some ground but is still far from erasing an 8% plunge a day earlier. China’s central bank, meanwhile, is putting $57 billion in funds into its markets. The measure is on top of an advance announcement from Monday that the government would put $173 billion into the markets as they reopened from an extended break because of the virus.

(More stock market stories.)

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