Wall Street calms as U.S. stocks rise

Stocks opened higher on Wall Street Wednesday morning following two days of tumult. After the Dow Jones industrial average took a 1,175-point nosedive on Monday, stocks plunged again Tuesday morning, but the market pulled off a late-afternoon rally, taking back some of the lost territory. Consumer-focused companies like Disney and Amazon made the most gains. Global trading also was calmer Wednesday, with markets in Germany, Britain, France, and Japan up slightly. But investors are still nervous: The VIX index, Wall Street’s “fear gauge” is currently double where it was two weeks ago.