Equity bulls came out in force in the wake of the US Federal Reserve’s pledge to be “patient” on raising interest rates, although participants also kept a wary eye on the oil markets as early gains for crude prices turned into sharp losses.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 leapt 2.4 per cent to 2,061 — its biggest percentage rise since January 2013 — after climbing 2 per cent on Wednesday, leaving the benchmark down less than 1 per cent from its record high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a much smaller index with just 30 companies, finished 2.4 per cent stronger at 17,778.15.
Across the Atlantic, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 index jumped 3 per cent, its biggest one-day rise since late 2011, while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo climbed 2.3 per cent.