New York (AFP)

Wall Street closed sharply higher on Monday, getting off to a good start to a busy week with economic and political news, and seeking to recoup gains lost in previous weeks.

Its flagship index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, gained 1.51% to 27,584.06 points.

The Nasdaq, with strong technological coloring, advanced 1.87% to 11,117.53 points and the extended S&P 500 index gained 1.61% to 3,351.60 points.

As of Friday, the indices rebounded, advancing 1.34% for the DJIA and 2.26% for the Nasdaq.

But over the week, the Dow Jones and the S&P 500, the most representative index of the US market, had lost points for the fourth week in a row.

"We started the week on a good note. Even though tech and banking led the way, most sectors were up," commented Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities, noting that the week would be "intense" in new political and economic.

"Friday, we expect the employment figures and tomorrow Tuesday, of course, the first presidential debate" between Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Joe Biden, added this analyst.

"The presidential election appears to be the next major catalyst in the short term with the first debate this week," said Art Hogan of National Holdings Corporation.

The markets will also know more Tuesday about the morale of American consumers for September and also about their spending the month before, whose figures will be released Thursday.

Analysts are banking on an improvement in the Conference Board's confidence index this month.

For August, growth in consumer spending may have slowed, analysts say, as they see their income falling sharply.

Investors also kept their eyes riveted on the hope of an agreement between Democrats and Republicans in Congress for new budget support in the face of the damage to the economy caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bank stocks led the way, with JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup all finishing above 2%.

Airlines have raised their heads.

United Airlines, which signed an agreement with its pilots on Monday to prevent the technical unemployment of 2,850 of them until at least June 2021, took more than 5%.

American Airlines, which just accepted a $ 5.5 billion loan from the US Treasury, gained almost 4%.

Its leader said he was "confident" on Sunday about the possibility of an extension of the government's aid package beyond September 30.

Boeing was also gaining height (+ 6.49%), while on Wednesday, a test flight of the 737 Max, grounded for a year and a half after two disasters, will be piloted by the head of the air regulatory authority ( FAA) itself.

Space tourism company Virgin Galactic jumped more than 24% after favorable comments from analysts.

US shale oil producers Devon Energy and WPX Energy, who announced their plans to merge, saw their shares climb more than 11% and 16% respectively.

On the bond market, the 10-year rate on US debt rose to 0.6594% against 0.6544% on Friday night.

© 2020 AFP