New York - US stocks rallied Tuesday over speculation that president-elect Barack Obama's stimulus package will jump start the ailing US economy. The markets gained even after the Federal Reserve released the minutes of its last policy meeting in December, when the central bank decided to lower its key interest rate to near zero.
Gross domestic product would decline in 2009 and the financial outlook would remain weak even if non-traditional methods were used to stabilize the economy, according to the minutes. Central bankers also said that unemployment would continue to rise in 2010.
Estimates put Obama's stimulus plan at between 675 billion and 775 billion dollars, a bulk of which would be devoted to tax cuts for workers and business.
The largest US aluminium maker, Alcoa, announced Tuesday that it would cut its global workforce by 13,500 jobs, or 13 per cent, by the end of the year amid the widening recession.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 62.21 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 9,015.10. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index climbed 7.25 points, or 0.78 per cent, to 934.70. The technology- heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was up 24.35 points, or 1.50 per cent, to 1,652.38.
The US currency rose against the euro to 74.086 euro cents from 73.361 euro cents on Monday. The dollar jumped against the Japanese currency to 93.568 yen from 93.237 yen on Monday.
