Wall Street soars as government pledges bank aid

Wall Street snapped back from last week’s devastating losses after major governments announced further steps to support the global banking system, including plans by the U.S. Treasury to buy stocks in some banks. All the major indexes rose well over 6 percent, and the Dow Jones industrials gained 500 points.

The hope on the Street was that the market was finding a bottom after eight sessions of devastating losses that sent the Dow down nearly 2,400 points. But while a rebound had been expected at some point, Wall Street can expect to see volatile, back-and-forth trading in the coming days and weeks as investors work through their concerns about the banking sector, the stagnant credit markets and the overall economy.

But the market did appear to take heart when the Bush administration said it is moving quickly to implement its $700 billion rescue program, including consulting with law firms about the mechanics of buying ownership shares in a broad number of banks to help revive the stagnant credit markets and in turn get the economy moving again.