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U.S. stocks end on slight downturn after early surge Tuesday

Streets near the New York Stock Exchange in New York City are nearly empty on March 16 due to coronavirus restrictions intended to slow the pandemic. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
Streets near the New York Stock Exchange in New York City are nearly empty on March 16 due to coronavirus restrictions intended to slow the pandemic. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

April 7 (UPI) -- U.S. stocks ended Tuesday with slight losses after surging to start the day, fueled by early increases in shares of cruise lines and airlines.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 26.13 points, or 0.12 percent, while the S&P 500 ended the day down 0.16 percent and the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.33 percent after markets surged on Monday as the Dow rose by 1,600 points, or nearly 8 percent.

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The Dow rose as much as 937 points on Tuesday, while the S&P 500 climbed as high as 93.21 percent and the Nasdaq Composite peaked at a 2.9 percent increase.

Tuesday's early gains reflected a slowdown of the coronavirus pandemic in many nations. China, once the epicenter of the disease, reported no new virus-related deaths on Tuesday.

Cruise lines and airlines, two industries that have been heavily affected by the pandemic, saw a jump in share prices early Tuesday.

United Airlines stock rose 1.92 percent on Tuesday, while Southwest Airlines climbed 6.74 percent and American Airlines surged 7.58 percent.

"The market's recent action suggests that investors are betting on an economic recovery starting during [the fourth quarter] and continuing through 2021," Ed Yardeni, chief investment strategist at Yardeni Research, wrote in a note to clients.

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Despite the positive news related to the coronavirus, investors expressed concerns that the markets -- which have rallied about 20 percent from their lows on March 23 -- will still feel the weight of shutdowns due to the virus.

"Risk to the downside is greater than the opportunity to the upside from this point where we stand today," Goldman Sachs chief equity strateigist David Kostin told CNBC. "I would just remind you that in 2009 in the fourth quarter there were many different rallies, I call them bear market rallies, some of which almost 20 percent a couple of times -- but the market did not bottom until March 2009."

U.S. copes with COVID-19 pandemic

Bass Pro Shops marketing manager David Smith (R) carries a box of donated face masks into Mercy Health in Chesterfield, Mo., on May 13. The company is donating 1 million FDA-approved ASTM Level 1 Procedure Face Masks to healthcare workers and first responders working on the front lines of the pandemic. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

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