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* Biden sweeps South in Democratic presidential primaries
* Health insurers surge after primaries
* Nordstrom tumbles after disappointing 2020 profit forecast
* Indexes up: Dow 1.72%, S&P 1.26%, Nasdaq 1.02%
(Updates to open)
By Medha Singh and Sanjana Shivdas
March 4 (Reuters) - Healthcare stocks boosted Wall Street on
Wednesday after a near sweep for Joe Biden in the Super Tuesday
Democratic primaries, a day after markets suffered heavy losses
following an emergency interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
The benchmark S&P 500 .SPX rose for the second time in 10
sessions, bolstered by Biden's return to front-runner status in
the U.S. Democratic presidential nomination campaign over
self-declared socialist Bernie Sanders. "The markets will see Biden's success as helping to
eliminate what they see as the worst option, a Sanders
presidency," said Chris Nixon Cox, Chief Global Strategist at
BrightSphere Investment Group.
Shares of health insurers UnitedHealth Group Inc UNH.N ,
Centene Corp CNC.N , Humana Inc HUM.N and Cigna Corp CI.N
surged between 9.8% and 13.4%. The broader healthcare .SPXHC
index jumped 3.2%, the most among all the major S&P sectors
trading higher.
The healthcare sector had suffered in recent months as
Sanders and his "Medicare for All" proposal, which would
eliminate private health insurance altogether, gained
prominence.
The three indexes dropped nearly 3% on Tuesday as an
emergency interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve amplified
fears about the extent of the economic damage from the
coronavirus outbreak.
Fears of a global slide into recession, and a resulting
collapse in U.S. corporate earnings this year, have knocked $3.1
trillion off the value of major U.S. companies in the past 10
days.
At 9:54 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 445.37 points, or 1.72%, at 26,362.78, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 37.97 points, or 1.26%, at 3,041.34. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 88.84 points, or 1.02%, at 8,772.93.
Adding to the upbeat mood, the ADP National Employment
Report showed U.S. private payrolls rose more than expected in
February. The data is considered a precursor to the more
comprehensive jobs report on Friday.
All eyes will also be on the Fed's beige book report, which
will offer the first snapshot from the central bank's business
contacts on how deeply the coronavirus is impacting the domestic
economy. U.S. food company Campbell Soup Co CPB.N rose 5.9% after
lifting its 2020 profit forecast, and topping analyst estimates
for the quarter on improved demand for its soups. Upscale retailer Nordstrom JWN.N slid 4.5% after
forecasting a 2020 profit largely below market expectations.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 4.39-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.88-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 recorded two new 52-week highs and 13 new lows,
while the Nasdaq recorded 14 new highs and 35 new lows.