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Wall Street's main indexes surged on Wednesday as oil prices recovered some ground and Congress looked on course to seal nearly $500 billion more in aid to help small businesses ride out the coronavirus crisis.

Oil producer countries may have to cut output more than the record amount already agreed to tackle an "unprecedented" slump in prices, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh was quoted as saying on Wednesday by the ministry's website SHANA.

Iran will not suffer as much as other countries from the oil price plunge as it is less reliant on crude exports, its president said on Wednesday, with the state budget depending far less than before on oil revenue due to U.S. sanctions.

Nasdaq Inc reported higher-than-expected first-quarter profits on Wednesday, benefiting from market volatility fueled by the coronavirus crisis, but the transatlantic exchange operator also warned of uncertainty ahead.

The euro zone economy is already in its deepest recession on record, according to a Reuters poll of economists, who have stuck to a bleak outlook and worry the downturn might be even worse as coronavirus lockdowns across the bloc take their toll.

Brent crude oil rebounded from two days of losses and U.S. futures surged on Wednesday, bolstered by tentative discussions of additional supply cuts from OPEC producers and U.S. inventory builds that were less dire than some anticipated.

AT&T Inc pulled its financial forecast for the year on Wednesday as the impact of the coronavirus pandemic clouded its view for the foreseeable future.

Delta Air Lines Inc said on Wednesday it does not expect air travel to recover for two or three years and is working to halve its cash burn after posting its first quarterly loss in eight years due to the coronavirus pandemic."We should be prepared for a choppy, sluggish recovery even after the virus is contained," Chief Executive Ed Bastian said.

Shares of Expedia Group Inc rose 9% on Wednesday after a report that the online travel services company was in advanced talks to sell a stake to private-equity firms Silver Lake Partners and Apollo Global Management Inc for about $1 billion.

Investment firm Sycamore Partners is seeking to end its deal to buy a stake in L Brands Inc's lingerie brand Victoria's Secret, citing business decisions the retailer took during the coronavirus pandemic, a court filing on Wednesday showed, sending the company's shares down over 20%.

Brent crude oil rose 8.4% on Wednesday, as prospects for extra pledges from major producers to cut output prompted a sharp turn up off a session low that took the global benchmark below $16 a barrel to its lowest since 1999.

It may take European Union countries until the summer or even longer to agree on how exactly to finance aid to help economies recover from the coronavirus pandemic as major disagreements persist, a bloc official said on Wednesday.

The U.S. housing regulator on Wednesday announced its second step in as many days to help ease the liquidity strain in the mortgage market.

Mercedes-Benz is ramping up engine production at its plant in Bad Cannstatt, Stuttgart, this week after Germany eased lockdown measures in a sign Europe's largest economy is getting back to work after the coronavirus brought the country to a standstill.

Shares of American Eagle Outfitters Inc dropped 14% on Wednesday after the apparel retailer withdrew its full-year forecast and said current-quarter results would be significantly hit by coronavirus-related store closures.

Delta Air Lines Inc has taken steps to halve its cash burn to $50 million per day through June after posting its first quarterly loss in eight years, and is bracing for a two to three year recovery from the coronavirus pandemic."We should be prepared for a choppy, sluggish recovery even after the virus is contained," Chief Executive Ed Bastian said in an employee memo on Wednesday.

IKEA, the world’s biggest furniture brand, opened three of its six stores in Israel on Wednesday after the government started to gradually ease its coronavirus lockdown.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned on Wednesday that larger companies could face investigation if they apply for small business coronavirus rescue money without carefully reviewing whether they qualify for it.

Oklahoma's energy regulator on Wednesday ruled in favor of an oil company's application effectively bars property owners from cancelling leases where production is halted due to low prices.

Norwegian Air , the budget carrier that changed the way people travel across the Atlantic, is fighting for survival as the coronavirus pandemic deepens the company's financial straits, forcing it to furlough staff and cancel flights.