Dow surges 553 points as bank stocks rise amid reopening hopes

May 27 (UPI) -- The major U.S. markets continued their winning streak on Wednesday, closing with gains as optimism about states reopening grows.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 553 points, or 2.21 percent, a day after it gained 529 to close Tuesday.

The S&P 500 rose 1.48 percent to around the 3,000 level, which the index surpassed on Tuesday for the first time since the coronavirus crisis arrived in March. The Nasdaq Composite also closed up 0.77 percent after it had slid about 70 points by noon EDT Wednesday.

Netflix stock gained 1.23 percent after falling earlier in the day and Zoom Video declined 1.24 percent on Wednesday, contributing to the Nasdaq's flat closing.

Bank stocks continued to rise Wednesday as Citigroup stock soared 8.49 percent and JPMorgan Chase gained 5.78 percent.

Wednesday is the second day since the New York Stock Exchange reopened its trading floor to about a quarter capacity. It was closed for about two months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Despite positive results in the past two weeks, the Dow remains down more than 12 percent in 2020 and the S&P 500 has fallen 7.4 percent, while the Nasdaq has risen more than 4 percent.