US close: Stocks rally as bond yields retreat from recent highs

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks closed sharply higher on Monday as Treasury yields retreated from last week's highs and some positive vaccine news helped boost sentiment among investors.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.95% at 31,535.51, while the S&P 500 was 2.38% firmer at 3,901.82 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 3.01% stronger at 13,588.83.

The Dow Jones closed 603.14 points higher on Monday, reversing Friday's whopping 469.64 point loss amid elevated bond yields.

The 10-year Treasury yield slid to 1.44% on Monday, down two whole basis points from Friday and well off its recent high of 1.6% that rattled investors and major indices.

In addition to cooling bond yields, news that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel had unanimously voted to recommend Johnson & Johnson's one-shot Covid-19 vaccine for people over the age of 18 years gave sentiment a boost throughout the session.

J&J expects to ship out 4.0m doses initially, with the group's chief executive stating Americans should start receiving their single-dose shots within 48 hours.

Also in focus, the House of representatives passed Joe Biden's $1.9trn Covid relief bill early on Saturday, with the legislation now moving to the Senate for it to consider.

On the macro front, IHS Markit's manufacturing PMI declined to 58.6 in February from 59.2 in January, slightly higher than the flash estimate of 58.5.

Elsewhere, the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing PMI rose to 60.8 in February, up from 58.7 and above expectations for a print of 58.9, equalling its highest reading since February 2018.

Lastly, construction spending surged to a record high in January, according to the Commerce Department, growing 1.7% to $1.521trn, while data for December was revised slightly higher to show construction outlays rising 1.1% instead of 1.0% as previously reported.

In the corporate space, Zoom Video shares traded higher in extended trading on the back of a 369% quarterly sales increase.