Wall Street: Stocks end higher on agreement on stimulus bill

NEW YORK (AP): Investors shuttled between optimism and pessimism Wednesday, finally betting that the government might help the economy out of recession after all.

News late in the session that key lawmakers agreed on a $790 billion economic stimulus plan sent stocks moderately higher in a partial rebound from a plunge Tuesday that took the Dow Jones industrials down 382 points. Stocks meandered for much of Wednesday's trading as investors struggled for a second day over what to make of developments in Washington.