Wall Street had a record-setting day Tuesday with investors optimistic that economic relief from Congress for the coronavirus pandemic may be very close.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot up more than 2,100 points — its highest one-day point gain in history — an 11% rise that put the Dow back over the 20,000 mark.
The S&P 500 enjoyed a 9% gain, while the NASDAQ was 8% higher.
Global indexes also saw big gains Tuesday — with key British, French and German indexes more than 8% higher and Tokyo's Nikkei up more than 7%.
Energy stocks led Tuesday's gains on Wall Street, along with airlines and resorts. With worldwide travel at a standstill because of the virus, people around the world in lockdown and sheltering in place are eager to get out and start working, earning and spending again.
Some U.S. analysts say they are optimistic that the worst may soon be coming to an end after President Donald Trump said Monday, "America will … soon be open for business. Very soon, a lot sooner than three or four months that somebody was suggesting, a lot sooner."
But experts are cautioning against too much optimism. They say a premature declaration that the worst of the outbreak is over could lead to even bigger problems.
Wall Street is still in what investors call a bear market, where wild up and down swings in stock prices are common.
Some economists are predicting the U.S., with the world's biggest economy, will fall into a recession in the April-to-June period.
