Wall Street Ends Up 2%, Dow Above 25,000 Points First Time Since COVID-19 Lockdowns

Fahad Shabbir (@FahadShabbir) Published May 28, 2020 | 02:10 AM

NEW YORK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th May, 2020) Stocks on Wall Street closed up 2 percent to extend their recovery from the coronavirus-triggered selloff, with the key Dow Jones Industrial Average index settling above 25,000 points the first time since lockdowns imposed by the pandemic.

The Dow, the broadest equities gauge on the New York Stock Exchange, closed up 2.2 percent at 25,548 on Wednesday.

The S&P 500, barometer for the top 500 US stocks, settled up 1.5 percent at 3,063.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished up 0.8 percent at 9,412.

The COVID-19 forced a two-month long lockdown of the US economy, resulting in gross domestic product registering a negative 4.

8 percent growth in the first quarter,� the sharpest such decline since the Great Recession of 2008/09.�

While all 50 states in America have reopened most of their economy over the past two weeks, economists still warn of a sharp recession by the second quarter, as nearly 40 million Americans have lost their jobs since the end of February.

Despite such worries, US stocks have forerun the economic numbers, with the Dow down just 10 percent on the year. The S&P500 shows a 6 percent decline for 2020, while the Nasdaq Composite already shows a 5 percent gain on the year.