Wall Street rose in choppy trading today, building on the previous session's gains.
It came as the US Senate neared a vote to clear a $2 trillion stimulus package to support businesses and households affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Hopes of the stimulus, which followed aggressive liquidity moves by the Federal Reserve, helped the Dow Jones index post its biggest intra-day percentage jump since 1933.
After seesawing in early trading, the blue-chip index added 5%, boosted by a 30.4% jump in Boeing Co as sources said the planemaker may restart production of 737 MAX jet by May, setting up the stock for its best day since 1981.
After losing nearly three-quarters of its value since mid February, the planemaker, once the symbol of US manufacturing strength, has gained in the last three days as governments mull bailing out the aerospace industry, which is facing near collapse in demand.
But with fears of a global recession and corporate defaults running high amid a breakdown in business activity, traders said one of the biggest routs on Wall Street may not halt without evidence of a peaking in new coronavirus cases.
A 9% surge for the benchmark S&P 500 had helped it recoup about $1.8 trillion in market value on Tuesday in wild swings last seen at the height of the global financial crisis.
The CBOE volatility index, while down from 12-year peaks hit last week, is still at levels far above those in 2018 and 2019.
"There is a lack of fundamental data that we rely on as equity investors to determine what prices should be," said Sean O'Hara, president of Pacer ETFs, a division of Pacer Financial.
"The data that we don't have is what is the impact going to be to GDP, on earnings and how many people are going to wind up losing their job."
