U.S. stocks rebounded from Monday's depths on Tuesday as actions by the Federal Reserve and President Donald Trump reignited investment hopes for the economy. The Fed announced on Tuesday that it will establish a Primary Dealer Credit Facility (PDCF) to help "support smooth market functioning and facilitate the availability of credit to businesses and households." and a Commercial Paper Funding Facility (CPFF) to "finance a wide range of economic activity, supplying credit and funding for auto loans and mortgages as well as liquidity to meet the operational need of a range of companies." In addition, the Fed announced two actions to support the U.S. economy and allow banks to keep leading: a statement encouraging banks to support household and businesses; and a technical change in automatic distribution restriction gradually if a firm's capital levels decline.
President Trump on Tuesday expressed a plan to help the U.S. economy by offering citizens and businesses that are hurt by the outbreak up to $1 trillion in aid. Trump is working with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on a plan that may directly send checks to Americans in order to keep consumer spending alive.
Despite efforts made by the Trump Administration and the Fed, many Wall Street analysts have already called for an upcoming recession. Firms including S&P, Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), Barclays (NYSE: BCS)and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) have predicted that the global economy will see at least two quarters of negative GDP.
"The initial date from China suggest that its economy was hit far harder than projected, though a tentative stabilization has begun," S&P Global's Chief Economist Paul Gruenwald said in a statement. "Europe and the U.S. are following a similar path, as increasing restrictions on person-to-person contact presage a demand collapse that will take activity sharply lower in the second quarter before recovery begin late in the year."
Here's how the major stock market indices closed on Tuesday:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): +5.98% or 142.73 points to 2,528.86
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): +5.19% or +1,048.49 points to 21,237.01
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): +6.23% or +430.19 points to 7,334.78
In Major Stock News, BioNtech (NASDAQ: BNTX) has announced that the Germany-based biotech will be teaming up with Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. Regeneron (NASDAQ: REGN) also stated on Tuesday that the biotech aims to have does of a potential COVID-19 treatment ready for testing by early summer. Shares of the household cleaner Clorox (NYSE: CLX) rallied on Tuesday as the number of new cases in the U.S. grew. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has announced it will be closing its store until further notice. Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) and L Brands (NYSE: LB) also announced the temporarily closure of their stores. McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) asked their franchises to close their dining rooms and only offer dive-thru service.
In Stock Sector News, all sectors rallied from their Monday lows with Utilities leading the way. The Performance gains were as follows: Utilities +13.11%, Consumer Staples +8.39%, Real Estate +6.94%, Information Technology +6.77%, Materials +6.66%, Health Care +6.26%, Financials +5.77%, Industrials +4.20%, Consumer Discretionary +4.03%, Communication Services +3.99% and Energy +0.72%.
Lastly, in Commodity and Currency News, Goldman Sachs lowered its second quarter 2020 outlook for Brent Crude (NYSE: BNO) to $20 per barrel from $30. This was the second time the investment firm slashed its forecast in two weeks for the global benchmark. Oil prices took another heavy hit on Tuesday, with West Texas Intermediate (NYSE: USO) dropping -6.52% and Brent slipping -3.42. Barrel prices currently rest between $26-$29 each. Gold (NYSE: GLD) had a small rally today, with the metal's ounce price increasing +1.40% to cost around $1,529. Finally, the U.S. Dollar (NYSE: UUP) gained a larger amount of strength when compared to Monday, with the DXY Index increasing +1.55% on Tuesday.