Wall Street rallied on Wednesday with all major indexes gaining more than 2 percent after five days of straight sell-off sessions.

Stocks opened higher on Wednesday after the US Treasury Department released detailed guidelines of the housing relief plan, which was announced last month.

The program aims to help up to 9 million borrowers stay in their homes through refinanced mortgages or loans that are modified to lower monthly payments.

Market also found confidence in stock markets in emerging economies, many of which have risen off November lows. Investors are focused on China as the Chinese government would launch a larger stimulus plan to combat the economic downturn.

Shares gained further after the February reading of the Institute for Supply Management service index was slightly better than economists' expectations. The index fell to 41.6 from 42.9 in January.

However, unemployment in US private sector worsened in February, as a report showed that private employers cut 697,000 jobs in the month, the biggest job loss since the record began in 2001.

US economic activity "deteriorated further" through February, dampening prospects for a quick recovery from recession, the Federal Reserve said in its Beige Book.

"Looking ahead, contacts from various districts rate the prospects for near-term improvement in economic conditions as poor, with a significant pickup not expected before late 2009 or early 2010," the report said.

In corporate earnings, homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. said its loss in the fiscal first quarter narrowed as it cut expenses. Still, revenue plunged by 51 percent as the company sold fewer homes.

Retailer Costco Wholesale Corp. posted a 27-percent drop in its fiscal second-quarter profit as sales of non-food items fell.

Shares of General Electric Co., one of the world's largest industrial conglomerates, fell 4.56 percent to close at US$6.69 after hitting an 18-year low of US$5.73.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 149.82 points, or 2.23 percent, to 6,875.84. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up 16.54 points, or 2.38 percent, to 712.87. The Nasdaq composite rose 32.73 points, or 2.48 percent, to 1,353.74.

(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2009)