Dow closes over 550 points higher after wild swing

U.S. stocks closed higher after a volatile trading session on Tuesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 567.02 points, or 2.33 percent, to 24,912.77. The S&P 500 increased 46.20 points, or 1.74 percent, to 2,695.14. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 148.36 points, or 2.13 percent, to 7,115.88.

Tuesday is marked by a return of volatility to the equities market that have been absent for quite some time.

The Dow traded in a near-1,000 point range throughout the session. It fell more than 500 points at the open, rebounded shortly afterwards to a 1 percent gain and then dipped nearly 2 percent before going back to green territory again.

Both S&P 500 and the Nasdaq followed the suit, both made more than 1 percent gain 10 minutes after the opening lower, and then swung up and down for the rest of the day.

The Cboe Volatility Index, Wall Street's fear gauge, rose to as high as 50.30 on Tuesday morning, the highest level since August 2015, before dropping back down to 37.51. But the level was still remarkably high compared to just a week ago.

The wild swing on Tuesday followed a steep sell-off which was considered a "flash crash" in the previous session.

On Monday, the Dow plummet nearly 1,600 points briefly in late trading, marking the worst intraday fall in market history. The index settled 1,175.21 points, or 4.60 percent lower while the S&P 500 slumped 4.10 percent on Monday, both erasing 2018's gains.

The steep sell-off started on Friday, when a stronger-than-expected jobs report suddenly reinforced investors' concerns of rising bond yields and higher inflation.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 200,000 in January, and the unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 4.1 percent, stronger than market expectations, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

Average hourly earnings posted a 0.3 percent gain for the month and an annualized gain of 2.9 percent.

On Friday, the Dow plunged 665.75 points, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq dropped 2.12 percent and 1.96 percent respectively.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)