At closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 529.95 points, or 2.16%, to 24,995.11. The S&P 500 - a gauge of US retirement and education savings accounts - added 36.32 points, or 1.22%, to 2,991.77. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 15.63 points, or 0.16%, to 9,340.22.
Market gains were supported by positive signs in the global economy, news of the gradual removal of economic restrictions related to COVID-19 and signs that Americans are beginning to feel safe enough to travel and congregate in larger groups.
Consumer confidence edged higher in May after two months of steep declines as businesses shuttered by the coronavirus pandemic gradually reopened, but the measure still hovers near six-year lows. The closely watched index of Americans' outlook rose to 86.6 from 85.7 in April, the Conference Board said Tuesday, driven by a pickup in expectations for the next six months. That comes after a record plunge last month.
Shares of Novavax Inc closed at 4.5% higher after the US biotech group has announced the launch of human trials for its COVID-19 vaccine, expecting initial results in July. Merck said Tuesday it plans to work with nonprofit research organizations to develop a vaccine.
Shares of Merck closed 1.2% higher after pharma giant also announced it is jumping into the coronavirus space with two deals involving two separate vaccine candidates for COVID-19 and a deal linked to a possible treatment for the disease.
Among Indian ADR, HDFC Bank rose 2.4% to $37.60, ICICI Bank 1.8% to $7.90, Tata Motors 2.8% to $5.61, Vedanta 1.3% to $4.75, and INFOSYS 0.2% to $9.07, while Dr Reddys Labs fell 0.91% to $50.94. Wipro ended flat at $2.96.
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