US STOCKS-Wall Street gains on hopes of coronavirus slowdown

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* New York nearing plateau in hospitalized patients -
governor
* S&P 500 set for best two-day gain in nearly two weeks
* Energy index leads gains among major S&P 500 sectors
* Indexes rise: Dow 2.76%, S&P 2.40%, Nasdaq 1.81%

(Updates to early afternoon)
By Uday Sampath Kumar and Shreyashi Sanyal
April 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street rose on Tuesday on early
signs of the coronavirus outbreak plateauing in some of the
biggest U.S. hot spots, with the New York governor saying social
distancing measures to curtail the spread of the virus were
working.
The S&P 500 was set for its biggest two-day gain in nearly
two weeks, building on a 7% jump on Monday, as health officials
also said the pandemic may kill fewer Americans than recent
projections. Gains were led by the energy .SPNY , materials .SPLRCM
and financials .SPSY sectors, with an aggressive round of U.S.
fiscal and monetary stimulus in the past month also boosting
risk appetite.
"The rally is sentimental and a little premature because if
we lift these lockdown measures too soon and try to resume
economic activity, we're going to get a very severe pandemic
rebound," said Indranil Ghosh, chief executive officer of Tiger
Hill Capital in London.
The S&P 500 .SPX is up about 22% from March intraday lows,
but remains 19% below its mid-February record high as strict
stay-at-home orders crushed demand across industries including
airlines, automakers and hotels.
At 1:26 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 626.56 points, or 2.76%, at 23,306.55, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 63.85 points, or 2.40%, at 2,727.53 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 143.16 points, or 1.81%, at 8,056.40.
Wall Street's fear gauge .VIX has steadily retreated from
12-year peaks, but volatility is expected to remain high as
companies prepare to report an expected slide in first-quarter
earnings and outline more drastic plans to bolster cash
reserves.
"I'd like to think that the bottom is behind us, but I
wouldn't say that's necessarily the case," said Bert Brenner,
director of asset allocation strategy at People's United
Advisors in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Analysts now expect first-quarter earnings for S&P 500 firms
to fall 6.4% compared to a Jan. 1 forecast for a rise of 6.3%.
Exxon Mobil XOM.N throttled back a multi-year investment
spree in shale, LNG and deep water oil production, saying it
would cut planned capital spending this year by 30% as the
pandemic saps energy demand. Oilfield services firm Halliburton Co HAL.N said it would
cut about 350 jobs in Oklahoma and that its executives would
reduce their salaries. Exxon and Halliburton shares jumped 6% and 7%, respectively.
Norwegian Cruise Line NCLH.N , Royal Caribbean RCL.N and
Carnival Corp CCL.N , among the most heavily battered stocks
this year due to a near halt in global tourism, rose between 16%
to 21%.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 6.01-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.44-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded four new 52-week highs and no new
low, while the Nasdaq recorded nine new highs and 14 new lows.