New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange ended in green Tuesday, finding colors the day after a session that had seen the main indices register their heaviest declines in several months against the background of growing concerns around the coronavirus.

Its flagship index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, rose 0.66% to 28,722.85 points, ending five consecutive sessions of decline.

The highly technological Nasdaq took 1.42% to 9,269.68 points and the S&P 500, which represents the 500 largest companies on Wall Street, gained 1.01% to 3,276.24 points.

"A dose of optimism has entered the market with the idea that the coronavirus may not spread uncontrollably and cause a major crisis," said Karl Haeling of LBBW.

Market players however continue to closely monitor developments related to the viral pneumonia epidemic.

China pledged on Tuesday to be "transparent" in the face of the epidemic of viral pneumonia which has already killed more than 100 people and whose cases are increasing until Europe, while preparations are accelerating to evacuate foreign nationals from Wuhan, the original focus of the disease.

Investors have also carefully observed the quarterly results of several S&P 500 companies.

American arms maker Lockheed Martin rose 1.11% after announcing profits above analysts' expectations.

The industrial conglomerate United Technologies, which recorded record turnover in 2019, appreciated by 1.21%.

Xerox (+ 4.94%) and Whirlpool (+ 5.69%) jumped after doing better than analysts' expectations.

In contrast, the pharmaceutical company Pfizer (-5.03%) and the manufacturer of post-it 3M (-5.72%), which each published disappointing results, fell sharply.

Harley-Davidson (-3.01%) also fell after posting lower retail sales in the United States.

Apple, which was to report its results after the close of trading, rose 2.83%.

Just over 20% of S&P 500 companies have already published their results. According to the firm Factset, companies in the broad Wall Street index should post an average drop in earnings per share of 2.03% in the fourth quarter.

Market participants also paid close attention to the Fed's first monetary meeting of the year, which started on Tuesday and is scheduled to end on Wednesday. The Federal Reserve should keep rates unchanged despite pressure from Donald Trump for a further cut.

Among the indicators, orders for durable goods in the United States increased in December more than expected by analysts, according to data released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.

Consumer confidence rebounded in January and exceeded analysts' expectations after weakening slightly in December, according to the Conference Board index released on Tuesday.

On the bond market, the 10-year rate of American debt was up, at 1.651% around 9:25 p.m. GMT, against 1.608% the day before at the close.

© 2020 AFP