Wall Street posts biggest daily gains since August 2015

By Ovunc Kutlu

NEW YORK

U.S. stocks posted their biggest daily percentage gains since August 2015 on Monday as worries over a trade war between the U.S. and China subsided.

Stocks recovered after indexes lost more than 6 percent last week – their worst weekly decline in two years -- in the wake of tariffs imposed by the U.S. and China against each other.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Sunday he is "cautiously hopeful" about the U.S. and China reaching an agreement on the tariffs.

With hope that negotiations could lead to a deal between the world's biggest economies, investors took a strong buying position in the market.

The Dow Jones surged 669 points, or 2.8 percent, to end the day at 24,202. The S&P 500 rose 70 points, or 2.7 percent, to close at 2,658.

The Nasdaq increased 227 points, or 3.2 percent, to finish trading at 7,220.

Tech giant Microsoft saw its stock price gain 7.8 percent.

Shares of investment banking firm Goldman Sachs rose 3.8 percent, while Bank of America climbed 4.3 percent.