Investors rushed back into the stock market yesterday, propelling equity indexes to historic gains on the Federal Reserve's surprise interest-rate cut, which sparked a huge rally on top of early gains fueled by unexpectedly strong corporate earnings.

The Dow Jones industrial average soared 399.10 points, or 3.91 per cent, to 10,615.83, while the Nasdaq composite index rocketed 156.22 points, or 8.12 per cent, to 2,079.44. For the Dow, it was the third-largest point gain ever, while the Nasdaq's rise was the fourth-largest percentage gain ever. It was the highest finish for the Dow since March 9th, and the best since March 8th for the Nasdaq.