U.S. Stocks Rally On Bargain Hunting After Inflation Data, End On Upbeat Note

(RTTNews) - U.S. stocks rallied on Tuesday, bouncing back from recent losses, thanks to hectic bargain hunting, particularly in the banking sector.

The assurance from the regulators that there won't be a relapse of the financial crisis from 15 years ago helped lift sentiment.

Data showing a drop in U.S. consumer prices in the month of February contributed significantly to the positive mood in the market.

The major averages all ended on the positive side. The Dow ended with a gain of 336.26 points or 1.06 percent at 32,155.40, snapping a five-day losing streak. The index scaled a high of 32,306.59 and a low of 31,805.40 intraday.

The S&P 500 climbed 64.80 points or 1.68 percent at 3,920.56, while the Nasdaq settled at 11,428.15, gaining 239.31 points or 2.14 percent.

The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose by 0.4 percent in February after climbing by 0.5 percent in January. The advance by the index matched expectations.

Core consumer prices, which exclude food and energy prices, increased by 0.5 percent in February after rising by 0.4 percent in the previous month. Economists had expected core prices to rise by 0.4 percent.

The report also showed the annual rate of consumer price growth slowed to 6.0 percent in February from 6.4 percent in January.

The year-over-year growth, which was in line with economist estimates, marked the smallest 12-month increase since September 2021.

The annual rate of growth by core consumer prices edged down to 5.5 percent in February from 5.6 percent in January.

The slowdown in year-over-year price growth may help offset recent concerns about the outlook for interest rates ahead of next week's Federal Reserve meeting.

Salesforce.com climbed more than 4 percent. Intel, American Express, JP Morgan Chase, Microsoft and Goldman Sachs gained 2 to 4 percent.

Visa, Boeing, Apple, Nike, P&G, Chevron, Cisco Systems, Merck and McDonalds also ended with strong gains.

Meta Platforms shares surged more than 7 percent after the company said it would cut 10,000 jobs in mass layoffs.

Shares of First Republic Bank soared nearly 27 percent, bouncing back after plunging by about 60 percent in the previous session. Bancorp climbed about 2.7 percent.

Walgreens Boots Alliance, IBM and Amgen ended down 1 to 1.6 percent.

In overseas trading, Asian stocks tumbled on Tuesday as worries persisted about the fallout from the Silicon Valley Bank collapse and investors awaited key U.S. inflation data later in the day for clues on the path forward for U.S. monetary tightening.

European stocks closed on a buoyant note on Tuesday with investors indulging in some hectic bargain hunting at scores of counters, including those from the banking sector.

The mood turned positive in the markets amid hopes there will be a pause in aggressive U.S. interest rate hikes following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, and data showing a drop in U.S. consumer prices.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 1.48 percent. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 advanced 1.06 percent, Germany's DAX surged 1.75 percent, and France's CAC 40 climbed 1.82 percent.