NEW YORK (voa) – U.S. stocks rallied for a second consecutive day Wednesday, as investor optimism about an economic recovery sent the three major indices higher.
At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained more than 73 points (0.7 percent) to end the day at 10,427. The broad market indicator, the S&P 500, climbed 6 points (0.5 percent) to finish at 1,045. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained nearly 3 points (0.1 percent) to end the day at 1,827.
In London, the Financial Times Index ended the day up 19 points (0.4 percent) at 5,215, but in Paris the CAC 40 Index fell 5 points (0.1 percent) at 4,623. The Dax Index in Frankfurt closed 43 points lower (0.8 point) at 5,348.
Gold for current delivery in New York closed at $301.80 per ounce, up from $296.60 on Tuesday.
The dollar was mostly higher against the other major currencies.
Argentines Buy More US Dollars
Argentines have raced to Buenos Aires banks for the third consecutive day in another frantic bid to convert pesos into U.S. dollars.
Large crowds of nervous bank account holders waited in long lines Wednesday as riot police stood guard, watching for signs of trouble.
Argentines have been flocking to Buenos Aires banks to change money because dollar sales are not permitted outside the metropolitan area at this time.
The run on the banks started after the peso dropped to record lows Monday, trading at four to the dollar – a loss in value of 300 percent since late January. The same day, the government announced new restrictions on currency exchanges.
The panic dollar-buying comes just days before a mission from the International Monetary Fund is due in Buenos Aires for another assessment of the country’s financial situation. In December, the IMF refused to extend more than one-billion-dollars in loans to Argentina, saying the government failed to control spending.
The government is seeking upwards of $20 billion in international aid to help revive the economy, which has been in recession nearly four years.
On Wednesday, the Inter-American Development Bank made $694 million available to the government in new loans. Argentina also is in default on $141 billion in public debt and is struggling to contain an unemployment rate that has reached the 20 percent mark.
Also Wednesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill told the U.S. television network CNBC he was hopeful Argentina would soon develop an economic reform program that would allow it to receive new IMF loans.
Mr. O’Neill also said he stressed that point last week when he met with Argentine Economy Minister Jorge Remes Lenicov during a U.N. summit in Monterrey, Mexico.
