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Roundup: U.S. stocks surge on strong data

Xinhua, March 2, 2016 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks posted solid gains Tuesday, the first trading day of March, as Wall Street cheered over a batch of upbeat economic reports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 348.58 points, or 2.11 percent, to 16,865.08. The S&P 500 leapt 46.12 points, or 2.39 percent, to 1,978.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index soared 131.65 points, or 2.89 percent, to 4,689.60.

The U.S. manufacturing index registered 49.5 percent in February, an increase of 1.3 percentage points from the January reading of 48.2 percent and topping market expectations, the Institute Supply Management (ISM) said Tuesday.

"Even as the slowdown in global manufacturing deepened in the first two months of Q1-16, U.S. manufacturing edged back toward growth in January and February. Recent stability in the dollar is likely helping U.S. companies compete in the U.S. even as demand for manufactured products diminishes overseas," said Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial.

The Department of Commerce announced Tuesday that U.S. construction spending during January 2016 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,140.8 billion U.S. dollars, 1.5 percent above the revised December estimate, beating market consensus of 0.5 percent.

Meanwhile, investors expected a further easing of monetary policies due to downbeat manufacturing data out of the eurozone and China.

The data will likely give the U.S. Federal Reserve a pause as it deliberates on if and when it will further increase interest rates, according to Reuters.

"At this moment, I judge that the balance of risks to my growth and inflation outlooks may be starting to tilt slightly to the downside," said William Dudley, the New York Fed president, at a conference in Hangzhou, China.

Overseas, Chinese stocks rose and regained the 2,700-point mark Tuesday after its central bank announced a cut in its reserve requirement ration (RRR).

European equities also increased broadly Tuesday. German benchmark DAX index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange jumped 2.34 percent, while British benchmark FTSE 100 Index added 0.92 percent.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, decreased 13.87 percent to end at 17.70 Tuesday.

In other markets, oil prices extended gains as global stock markets went up.

The West Texas Intermediate for April delivery moved up 65 cents to settle at 34.4 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for May delivery increased 24 cents to close at 36.81 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The U.S. dollar decreased against most major peers despite positive economic data from the country.

In late New York trading, the euro dropped to 1.0865 dollars from 1.0883 dollars in the previous session, while the greenback bought 114.06 Japanese yen, higher than 112.83 yen of the previous session.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell as U.S. equities rebounded sharply.

The most active gold contract for April delivery fell 3.6 dollars, or 0.29 percent, to settle at 1,230.80 dollars per ounce. Enditem