Wall Street rallied Tuesday to its best day in three weeks as more reports poured in on how much profit companies made during the spring. The S&P 500 rose 105.84 points, or 2.8%, to 3,936.69 after a powerful tide carried 99% of the stocks in the index upward. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 754.44 points, or 2.4%, to 31,827.05. The Nasdaq rose 353.10 points, or 3.1%, to 11,713.15. Small-company stocks rose even more, pushing the Russell 2000 index up 3.5%. More types of companies are reporting how much they earned during the spring, broadening out from the banks that dominated the earliest part of the reporting season. Hasbro and Halliburton rose after reporting stronger profits than analysts expected, the AP reports.
Twitter rose 2.9% after a court in Delaware agreed to quickly schedule a lawsuit that could force billionaire Elon Musk to make good on his agreement to buy the company. IBM, though, fell 5.3% despite reporting stronger revenue and earnings than expected. The company’s profit margins fell short of some analysts’ expectations, and concerns are rising about the effect of the dollar's recent strength against other currencies. While a stronger dollar helps limit inflation at home, it can also undercut the value of sales made abroad by US companies.
Stocks have dropped roughly 20% this year on worries about rising interest rates and high inflation, which puts an even brighter spotlight than usual on how much profit companies are making. If earnings hold up, it will provide a major support for markets. But if CEOs warn about troubles ahead, another tumble may be on the way.
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