The Democratic governor laid out a plan that included accelerating major infrastructure projects and tackling transmission of the virus in the hardest-hit neighborhoods after ringing open the Stock Exchange. The mid-Hudson Valley, including the citys northern suburbs, on Tuesday became the latest region of New York state to begin slowly phasing in economic activity. Long Island was expected to follow Wednesday, which would leave New York City as the only region awaiting the start of reopening. ___STOCK EXCHANGE OPENSTraders cheered as Cuomo rang the opening bell of the Stock Exchange, which had been closed since March when the state shut down. ___CONTACT TRACERSNew York City has hired 1,700 contact tracers who will monitor infected people and reach out to their close contacts, de Blasio said Tuesday.

In this image provided by the New York Stock Exchange, New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo, center, applauds as he rings the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange with with New York Stock Exchange President Stacey Cunningham, right, Tuesday, May 26, 2020 in New York. (Courtney Crow/New York Stock Exchange via AP)TOKYO Stocks surged on Wall Street in afternoon trading Tuesday, driving the S&P 500 to its highest level in nearly three months, as hopes for economic recovery overshadow worries about the coronavirus pandemic. In another confidence-boosting development on Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange reopened its trading floor Tuesday for the first time since mid-March, when it closed due to the coronavirus outbreak. Andrew Cuomo rang the opening bell at the NYSE, which allowed a limited number of traders back to the floor.

Trader Daniel Krieger signals a thumbs-up as he arrives at the New York Stock Exchange where the trading floor reopens, Tuesday, May 26, 2020. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)NEW YORK The trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange reopened for the first time in two months with New York Gov. Cunningham said most of the areas outside of the trading floor will remain empty and the majority of employees will continue to work remotely. Several thousand brokers and others used to crowd the trading floor of the NYSE as recently as the 1990s. But in the years since, the rise of electronic trading grew to dominate the action on Wall Street.