US: Stocks rise on bargain-hunting, earnings hopes

[NEW YORK] Wall Street stocks bounced early Tuesday, recovering some of the losses of the prior session on bargain-hunting and optimism about quarterly earnings.

About 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had rebounded 0.7 per cent to 23,810.58.

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.5 per cent to 2,595.61, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.8 per cent to 6,922.01.

Major US indices slumped about two percent Monday in a bruising open to the second quarter amid worries about escalating trade conflicts and a series of problems facing major technology companies, including Amazon and Facebook.

But analysts said the retreat provided an incentive for investors to return to the market.

Investors also are gearing up for a strong first-quarter earnings reporting season, which kicks off later this month. Companies in the S&P 500 are projected to report a 17.3 per cent increase compared with the year-ago period, according to Factset.

Tesla Motors jumped 4.4 per cent after it reported that its current output of Model 3 vehicles was about 2,000 a week, below the 2,500 target, but well above the level in the prior quarter.

Most other leading technology companies were higher, with Amazon, Google-parent Alphabet and Intel all up about one per cent or more. But Facebook shed 0.3 per cent.

AFP