Easing interest rates fears perk up Wall Street

Backed by solid gains on the Wall Street the Nikkei has surged 156 points to 15,937. The Hang Seng is marginally up 16 points at 15,652.

The US indices rallied last night on the back of lower oil prices and easing of fears related to rising interest rates. While the Dow Jones gained 68 points to 11,137, the Nasdaq moved up 20 points to 2,283.

The US crude oil futures for April delivery plunged $1.73 to settle at $61.01 a barrel on the NYMEX.

The Indian ADRs ended on a mixed note. ICICI Bank ($31.03) and VSNL ($17.38) added around 2% each. Infosys advanced 1% to $70.68. On the other hand HDFC Bank slumped 4% to $54. Dr.Reddy's slipped over 1% to $29.30.