US STOCKS-Wall Street advances at end of blistering week

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* All three main indexes rise more than 1%
* Battered airline stocks rebound
* Technology stocks prop up Nasdaq
* Indexes up: Dow 1.32%, S&P 1.02%, Nasdaq 2.10%

(Updates to open)
By Medha Singh
March 20 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main stock indexes rose
more than 1% on Friday, as dramatic intervention by U.S.
policymakers halted the worst monthly selloff in U.S. equities
in three decades.
The measures unleashed by the White House and the central
bank have injected a note of optimism in the markets, after
weeks of steep declines that ended a record 11-year bull run.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq .IXIC jumped more than 2%, propped
up by heavyweights Microsoft MSFT.O , Amazon AMZN.O and Apple
AAPL.O , while airlines .SPCOMAIR gained 4.5% after losing
more than half their value since late-February.
Investors are counting on further easing in the next few
days, as the Senate mulls a $1 trillion package that would
include direct financial help for Americans.
"It's the effect of both central banks and governments
signaling that they're willing to do whatever it takes," said
Teeuwe Mevissen, senior market economist at Rabobank.
"But in general, I don't think these movements signal that
the worst is over and that we are going to get back to normal
anytime soon."
Fears over the severity of the outbreak have wiped off
nearly 30% - or more than $8 trillion - from the value of the
benchmark S&P index since its record closing high on Feb. 19, as
the rapid spread of COVID-19 shuts down large cities and upends
business activity.
California became the latest U.S. state to issue an
unprecedented statewide "stay at home" order as the number of
coronavirus deaths in the country hit 200. A Reuters poll of economists suggested the global economy
was already in recession. AT&T T.N tumbled 4.1% as the wireless carrier warned the
virus might have a material impact on financial results and
canceled a $4 billion share repurchase agreement. At 10:31 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was up 264.57 points, or 1.32%, at 20,351.76, the S&P 500 .SPX
was up 24.68 points, or 1.02%, at 2,434.07. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 150.03 points, or 2.10%, at 7,300.60.
Eight of the 11 major S&P sectors were trading higher, with
technology .SPLRCT and consumer discretionary .SPLRCD stocks
leading gains.
Energy sector .SPNY advanced 3%, rebounding from the
lowest levels in nearly two decades, even as oil prices
weakened. O/R
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners more than 2-to-1 on
the NYSE and the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded no new 52-week high and 31 new lows,
while the Nasdaq recorded three new highs and 57 new lows.
Markets also face a "quadruple witching" on Friday, where
investors unwind positions in futures and options contracts
before their expiration.