The Dow Jones rose 1.20%, the Nasdaq index gained 0.39% and the broader S&P 500 index rose 0.89%.

After several massive interventions to reassure depositors of US banks and the announcement, on Sunday, of the takeover of Credit Suisse by its great rival UBS, Wall Street approached Monday's session with less tense nerves.

"In 2008, we had Lehman (Brothers), which did not find a buyer and led to a fall" in the markets, recalls Andy Kapyrin, Regent Atlantic. "This time we didn't get one. And I think the market breathes a sigh of relief that nothing more serious has happened."

On Monday, the VIX index, which measures market volatility, fell sharply.

Bond yields, which fell sharply last week, as risk appetite gradually returned. Investors have sold US Treasuries, assets considered safe, lowering their prices and raising their rates, which move in the opposite direction.

The yield on 2-year US government bonds, significantly more volatile than the 10-year yield, recovered to 3.96%, from 3.83% on Friday at the close.

But not all the lights are green and traders have closely observed the new fall of First Republic (-47.11%), considered the weak link in the US banking system at the moment.

"It's too early to say it's all over," Kapyrin warned. "People are going to keep worrying until it's all far behind us." But in the meantime, "the market offered opportunities today, with lower valuations," the analyst explained.

With the exception of First Republic, cheap purchases benefited, in the first place, the banks.

Among the most popular regional establishments, First Citizens (+10.47%), based in Raleigh (North Carolina), Fifth Third (+5.05%), Cincinnati (Ohio) or Californian PacWest (+10.78%).

The little-known group New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) soared (+31.65%) after the announcement, Sunday, of the takeover of part of the loan portfolio and deposits of its competitor Signature Bank, bankrupt. The assets will be housed within Flagstar Bank, a subsidiary of NYCB.

Some big names in the market such as JPMorgan Chase (+1.06%) and Goldman Sachs (+1.93%) also rode the wave.

Also badly treated last week, energy stocks have recovered colors, such as ExxonMobil (+2.61%) or Marathon Oil (+2.55%).

Conversely, after shining during the banking crisis, the technology sector was the subject of some profit-taking on the most prominent stocks last week, namely Microsoft (-2.58%) and Alphabet (-0.52%).

Amazon also ended in the red (-1.25%), after announcing the elimination of 9,000 additional positions, which are in addition to the 18,000 layoffs already decided at the beginning of the year, mainly attributed to the uncertain economy.

Elsewhere on the list, the listed vehicle Digital World Acquisition (+10.96%), which is to merge with Donald Trump's media group, had a jolt while the former president could be indicted imminently.

Excluding opportunity buying, Wall Street remained wait-and-see, as "uncertainty remains on whether the turmoil in the banking sector will have an influence on the decision of the Fed (US central bank), Wednesday," commented in a note, analysts of Schwab.

Traders mostly expect a quarter-point increase in the Fed's key rate, and do not rule out a further equivalent increase at the May meeting.

© 2023 AFP