Stocks soar as Senate closes in on economic rescue package

Stocks soared Tuesday as the Trump administration and Senate Democrats closed in on a nearly $2 trillion stimulus plan and economic rescue package after days of tense negotiations.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed with a gain of 11.4 percent, rising 2,112 points from a three-year low set on Monday. The index shattered its record for most points gained in a day, set at 1,985 on March 13, and boasted its best gain by percentage since 1932.

The S&P 500 index also rose 9.4 percent, and the Nasdaq composite rose 8.1 percent.

Wall Street found reprieve from a month of crashing stocks and financial panic after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced early Tuesday morning that they expected to clinch a stimulus deal.

Negotiations between Mnuchin and Schumer continued throughout Tuesday as details about the stimulus plan emerged. Schumer said Tuesday that the federal government will pay the full salaries of furloughed workers for up to four months under the emerging stimulus deal, which may get a vote as soon as Tuesday.

The Senate bill will also provide about $500 billion to the Treasury Department to backstop Federal Reserve loans to industries facing a liquidity shortage because of a loss of business related to the coronavirus crisis. 

Stocks rallied despite a steadily climbing number of confirmed coronavirus cases within the U.S. and darkening economic outlook for the world as it faces a pandemic. President Trump on Tuesday expressed his desire to have the U.S. return to nearly full economic activity by April 12 despite warnings from public health officials that social distancing may be necessary for months to mitigate the coronavirus.

Updated at 4:26 p.m.