Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - US markets surged on Bank of America’s earned analyst recommendations and retailer Lowes beat earnings estimates. The Dow surged 235 points to 8,504.88 while the NASDAQ gained 52 points to 1,732.36.
Asian markets rallied on a decline in LIBOR and returning confidence in US equity markets. The Nikkei gained 230 points to 9,268.84, the Hang Seng rose 512 points (3.01 percent) and the Singapore STI rallied 3.54 percent.
The BSE Sensex surged 17 percent to 14,284.21 on the back of election results in India. The index has gained 48 percent this year, the second largest gain worldwide.
The Japanese Yen (JPY) fell against most major currencies as investors turned away from safe assets to higher yields in the face of rallying equity markets. JPY fell from a two month high of 94.55 against the US $ to 96.43.
BBN/SS/SI/AD-19May09-12:09 pm (BST)