Stocks Rebound As Fed Begins Buying Corporate Bonds

By Avie Schneider

Published June 15, 2020 at 9:09 AM CDT

The Federal Reserve, led by Chairman Jerome Powell, announced it will buy corporate bonds, its latest step to prop up the economy.

Updated at 4:59 p.m. ET

After opening sharply lower, U.S. stock indexes climbed Monday after the Federal Reserve announced it will begin buying corporate bonds. It was the central bank's latest step to help an economy battered by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 157 points, or nearly 0.6%, and the broader S&P 500 index rose 0.8%. The Dow was down nearly 600 points shortly after the opening.

Volatility has returned to the markets. On Friday, U.S. indexes surged, with the Dow soaring 477 points. A day earlier, the Dow plunged 1,861 points.

Stocks rose Monday even as dozens of new coronavirus cases were discovered in Beijing, prompting renewed lockdown measures. Meanwhile, cases are still rising in several U.S. states that have reopened their economies.

Nearly 80 new cases of the coronavirus have been found in Beijing since Thursday, raising fears of a second wave of infections in the Chinese capital.

In the U.S., cases are surging in many states that have lifted lockdown orders, sparking concerns that an economic recovery will stall if lockdowns resume. Florida is seeing an average of more than 1,600 new cases per day, and Arizona and North Carolina are experiencing an average of more than 1,200 new cases per day.