Wall Street seems to think Washington will strike a deal by Thursday to avoid default on its debts.
The markets opened up a collective 1 percent Wednesday amid expectations that lawmakers will come to an agreement the day before the government runs out of money to pay its bills.
The Dow opened up 177 points, or more than 1 percent, to 15,345.29 in the first hour of trading.
The S&P 500 was up 18 points, or more than 1 percent, to 1,716.32.
The Nasdaq was up 41 points, or more than 1 percent, to 3,835.08.
The Treasury Department says it will run out of money to pay the country’s bills on Oct. 17, if the government does not agree to raise the debt limit. Economists say that would send the markets into chaos and could kick off another recession.
• Tim Devaney can be reached at tdevaney@washingtontimes.com.
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