World stock markets recorded sharp gains on Thursday.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up eight-tenths of a percent in midday trading. The S&P 500 is ahead one percent, while the NASDAQ is up 1.2 percent.

European stocks closed markedly higher.

London's Financial Times index ended up 3.7 percent to close at 5,291. The CAC-40 in Paris advanced 3.4 percent to finish at 3,075. The DAX index in Frankfurt moved 3.2 percent higher to end at 5,645.

Tokyo's Nikkei index gained 1.7 percent to finish at 8,522. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 5.7 percent to finish the day's trading at 17,172.

The price of gold increased $4.15 to trade at $1,645 an ounce.

The dollar is down against both the yen and euro.