WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks showed a strong move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday, regaining some ground following the massive sell-off seen in the previous session. Buying interest has waned since the open, however, leading the major averages to pull back well off their best levels.
Currently, the major averages are holding on to notable gains. The Dow is up 327.83 points or 1.4 percent at 24,178.85, the Nasdaq is up 157.24 points or 2 percent at 8,107.92 and the S&P 500 is up 47.17 points or 1.7 percent at 2,793.73.
Bargain hunting contributed to the initial strength on Wall Street after the Dow and the S&P 500 experienced their biggest percentage drops since the 2008 financial crisis on Monday.
Traders looked to pick up stocks at reduced levels following the sharp drop seen in recent weeks, which dragged the Dow down to its lowest levels in over a year.
Buying interest was also generated in reaction to President Donald Trump's pledge to provide 'very substantial relief' amid the economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak.
Trump told reporters Monday evening that he would be meeting with House and Senate Republicans today to discuss a possible payroll tax cut or other stimulus measures.
The president said he would also talk with GOP lawmakers about getting help for hourly wage earners, hinting at providing paid leave to those affected by the coronavirus.
'We're going to be working with companies and small companies, large companies - a lot of companies - so that they don't get penalized for something that's not their fault,' Trump said. 'It's not their fault, it's not our country's fault.'
'This was something that we were thrown into and we're going to handle it, and we have been handling it very well,' he added.
Trump indicated he plans to hold another press conference later today to discuss the economic steps being taken, although administration officials told CNBC the White House is not ready to roll out specific economic proposals.
Steel stocks have shown a substantial move back to the upside in morning trading, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index soaring by 3.8 percent after ending the previous session at its lowest closing level in well over three years.
Considerable strength has also emerged among banking stocks, as reflected by the 3.6 percent jump by the KBW Bank Index. The index is also bouncing off a more than three-year closing low.
Oil stocks are also rebounding after posting particularly steep losses on Monday, as the price of crude oil for April delivery is surging up $2.56 to $33.69 a barrel.
Computer hardware, semiconductor, software and transportation stocks are also seeing significant strength, while gold stocks are among the few groups bucking the uptrend.
In overseas trading, most stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region showed a notable turnaround over the course of the trading session on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.9 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index surged up by 1.8 percent.
Meanwhile, European stocks have pulled back off their best levels of the day but continue to post strong gains. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 1.2 percent.
In the bond, treasuries are giving back ground after moving sharply higher in recent sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 9.6 basis points at 0.595 percent.
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