Stocks Explode Higher, Dow Surges Almost 900 Points (Tim Paradis)

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It's been another astounding day on Wall Street, with the Dow Jones industrials soaring nearly 900 points as investors scooped up stocks that were pounded lower in recent sessions. Analysts said some investors were buying in anticipation that the Federal Reserve will cut its fed funds rate by half a point to 1 percent on Wednesday. Others said the market had just fallen too far, with the Dow having dropped more than 500 points, the previous two trading days.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street had another astounding advance Tuesday, with the Dow Jones industrials soaring nearly 900 points in their second-largest point gain ever as late-day bargain hunters stormed into the market. The Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index were each up nearly 11 percent.

There didn't appear to be any one catalyst for the surge that saw the Dow nearly double its gain in the last hour of trading. Many analysts said investors were grabbing up stocks in the belief that the market had fallen too far in recent sessions. Some said buying early in the day came from anticipation of an interest rate cut Wednesday by the Federal Reserve.

"There is nothing fundamental that came out today or yesterday that would take it up or down. We're all groping for something meaningful to talk about," said Bob Andres, chief investment strategist at Portfolio Management Consultants.

But given the relentless volatility in the market -- out of 20 trading days this month, there have been only two that didn't see the Dow close up or down in triple digits -- no one expects that the market is now headed higher for good.