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* Energy stocks soar as OPEC+ extends oil output cut
* Airlines, cruise operators jump
(Updates to close)
By Caroline Valetkevitch
June 8 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq hit a record high close on
Monday, confirming a bull market began on March 23, and the Dow
and S&P 500 jumped as expectations for a swift recovery from a
coronavirus-driven downturn increased.
The Nasdaq is the first of the Wall Street's three main
indexes to bounce back from the market crash caused by the
pandemic. A closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday showed an
unexpected fall in unemployment rate, bolstering views that the
worst of the economic damage from the virus outbreak was over.
"It's optimism surrounding the reopening of the global
economy, and the likely confirmation that the U.S. economy will
experience a V-shaped recovery in the second half," said Sam
Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research in New
York.
Stocks added to gains late in the session after the U.S.
Federal Reserve eased the terms of its "Main Street" lending
program. The energy sector .SPNY climbed the most among the 11
major S&P sectors as major oil producers agreed over the weekend
to extend a deal on record output cuts.
Beaten-down shares of cruise operators Carnival Corp CCL.N
and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd NCLH.N continued to
recover. The S&P 1500 airlines index .SPCOMAIR jumped.
Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
463.45 points, or 1.71%, to 27,574.43, the S&P 500 .SPX gained
38.53 points, or 1.21%, to 3,232.46 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 110.66 points, or 1.13%, to 9,924.75.
Investors will also focus this week on the Federal Reserve's
two-day policy meeting, ending on Wednesday, where the jobs
report will most likely be discussed.
It would be the first meeting since April when Fed Chair
Jerome Powell said the U.S. economy could feel the weight of the
economic shutdown for more than a year.