Investing.com – Wall Street notched on Wednesday a third-straight record close this week, as easing worries over the impact of the coronavirus prompted a wave of buying across stocks with energy leading the charge.
The S&P 500 rose 0.65%, Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 0.94%.
With one eye on potential oil production cuts from major oil products, investors cheered reports that the Covid-19 outbreak is slowing, which eased fears about weaker Chinese oil demand and triggered a rally in energy stocks.
Infections of the deadly virus in China, outside the Hubei province, the outbreak's epicenter, has fallen for the eighth day in a row, according to health authorities in China.
But with the virus' incubation period lasting up to 24 days and rising doubts about the data now that China has changed its methodology for counting the virus, some have flagged the risk of under-reporting.
Yet stocks that were battered when fears of pandemic threatened to boil over rallied strongly, with Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN), Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) and American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) ending the day higher.
The latest round of corporate earnings, meanwhile, also influenced moves in the broader market.
Shopify (NYSE:SHOP) jumped nearly 8% as its quarterly earnings topped estimates and the e-commerce platform delivered an upbeat outlook on revenue.
Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) fell 10% after the company said it doesn’t expect to become profitable until the end of 2021.
But Molson Coors Brewing (NYSE:TAP) reversed gains to fall 4%, shrugging off better-than-expected quarterly results.
Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ:BBBY), slumped more than 20%, after it reported a decline in sales in December and January.
Industrials, Boeing (NYSE:BA) ended 0.4% higher after Credit Suisse raised its price target on the aircraft maker to $367 from $321, citing "good news" ahead.