REFILE-US STOCKS-Wall St rises with economic hopes; bank stocks jump

(Deletes extraneous words in 3rd paragraph)
* Banks stocks surge, led by JPMorgan Chase
* Indexes: Dow up 2.2%, S&P 500 up 1.5%, Nasdaq up 0.8%

By Caroline Valetkevitch
May 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday, with the
S&P 500 closing above 3,000 for the first time since March 5, as
the further easing of lockdowns lifted optimism for an economic
recovery.
Bank stocks powered the day's advance, with the S&P 500
financial index .SPSY leading gains among major sectors. The
index rose nearly 10% over the past two sessions for its biggest
two-day increase since April 8-9.
JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM.N was the leading point gainer in
the financial index, rising 5.8% as the stock surged for a
second day in a row. The bank's chief executive, Jamie Dimon,
said Tuesday he expects JPMorgan will boost its credit reserves
again in the second quarter, but said there are signs the
economy is regaining its footing. After-the-bell on Wednesday, the head of JPMorgan's
corporate and investment banking division said second-quarter
revenues are on track to be more than 50% higher than the same
period last year. Continued easing of lockdowns, optimism about an eventual
COVID-19 vaccine and massive U.S. stimulus have been driving the
market's recent gains. On Wednesday, Walt Disney Co DIS.N
announced plans to begin reopening its Walt Disney World resort
in Florida, the world's largest theme park, in phases beginning
July 11, and MGM Resorts MGM.N said it would reopen its four
Las Vegas casinos on June 4. "It's all about liquidity and the hopes that the economy
will eventually do well," said Peter Cardillo, chief market
economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York.
"The rally will continue, but I don't think it will continue
without pullbacks," he said, noting that weak second-quarter
earnings could give investors a "reality check."
Tech-related shares underperformed the broader market on
Wednesday after leading the recent rally.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 553.16 points,
or 2.21%, to 25,548.27, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 44.36 points,
or 1.48%, to 3,036.13, and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
72.14 points, or 0.77%, to 9,412.36.
Amid the recent gains, U.S. tensions with China have cast a
cloud on markets.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Washington would
announce its response to China's planned national security
legislation on Hong Kong before the end of the week. Secretary
of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday that Hong Kong no longer
warrants special treatment under U.S. law as it did when it was
under British rule, potentially a big blow to its status as a
major financial hub. Tech-related shares are among the most sensitive to Chinese
growth, said Sameer Samana, senior global market strategist at
Wells Fargo Investment Institute in St. Louis.
"If the market is going to go higher from here, you're going
to have to have broader participation, but you are going to need
those large-cap tech companies to be along for the ride because
they make up such a large portion of the benchmark," Samana
said.
Also on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book report
showed that U.S. businesses continued to be hammered by the
effects of the novel coronavirus epidemic into the middle of
May. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
3.81-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.21-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted seven new 52-week highs and no new lows;
the Nasdaq Composite recorded 41 new highs and 10 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 12.86 billion shares, compared
to the 11.33 billion average for the full session over the last
20 trading days.