US equity markets climbed after two days of declines, buoyed by a combination of stabilising crude markets, some better-than-expected corporate earnings releases and expectations that the House of Representatives will pass a near US$500B emergency package that will provide additional aid to small business and funding for hospitals that was cleared by the Senate earlier this week - Dow up +457-points or +1.99% The broader S&P500 gained +2.29%, with Information Technology (up +3.87%) and Energy (+3.58%) leading all eleven primary sectors higher. L Brand Inc fell -15.51% and was briefly halted trading following a report that private equity firm Sycamore Partners was looking to cancel its deal to buy a majority stake in Victoria’s Secret. Avis Budget Group Inc rose more than >7% in the extended session after the rental-car company said it expects first-quarter sales modestly below consensus, thanks to a busy January and February. The technology-centric NASDAQ rose +2.75%. Facebook Inc (up +6.72%) announced that it will invest US$5.7B for a 9.99% stake in Jio Platforms, the digital technology arm of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani's sprawling conglomerate Reliance Industries.
