US Stocks End Higher On Improved Covid News

US equity markets posted solid gains for a second straight session on Wednesday on improving investor sentiment and better US Covid-19 trends ahead of a key inflation reading.

New York joined a wave of Democrat-run US states to roll back mask mandates, a symbolic step towards restoring normal life following a sharp drop in virus infections since mid-January.

The better indicators on the US Covid-19 picture have helped the market shrug off what JPMorgan Chase analysts called "overly bearish sentiment" that weighed on stocks for most of last month.

Still, many investors are edgy ahead of Thursday's consumer price reading for January after the prior month's report showed the highest inflation in decades.

The Dow Jones industrial Average finished up 0.9 percent at 35,768.

The S&P 500 gained 1.5 percent to 4,587, while the Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.1 percent to 14,490.

"Many investors remain optimistic about the economy going forward and that even if we have a hot inflation report, appetite for US stocks will still be strong despite the Fed raising rates possibly five times this year," said Oanda's Edward Moya.

Large technology companies had a strong day, including Facebook parent Meta, up 5.4 percent and Netflix, up 2.3 percent. Both companies had been punished after disappointing earnings releases.

Among individual companies, Chipotle Mexican Grill shot up 10.2 percent after it reported better-than-expected profits on a 22 percent jump in quarterly revenues to US$2 billion.

But CVS Health fell 5.5 percent despite results that beat expectations, as the company confirmed its full-year forecast but did not raise estimates. (AFP)