Wellington - The New Zealand stock market bounced back by 1.6 per cent Friday in the wake of the recovery on Wall Street as investors snapped up bargains after share prices fell by 5 per cent the previous day.

But it was a nervous recovery, with the benchmark NZX 50 index losing ground in the afternoon after gaining more than 2 per cent in morning trading.

It ended the day 44 points up, or 1.59 per cent, on 2808.76.

Tokyo - Tokyo's marketd climbed again in early trading Friday after a surge on New York's Wall Street late Thursday, with the Nikkei index of 225 leading companies gaining 265.33 points or 3.14 per cent to 8,723.78 at 9:19 am.

The Nikkei on Thursday plunged 11.41 per cent to 8,458.45 after New York markets plunged from 7 to 9 per cent on Wednesday.

Wall Street recovered some of its losses on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 4.68 per cent, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index up 4.25 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index up 5.49 per cent.

New York - US stocks surged on Thursday after a steep dive a day earlier amid ongoing fears of a global recession.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 401.35 points, or 4.68 per cent, to 8,979.26 in a late rally.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index picked up 38.59 points, or 4.25 per cent, to 946.43. The technology heavy Nasdaq Composite Index earned 89.38 points, or 5.49 per cent, closing at 1,717.71.

The gains were spurred in part by news that inflation had held steady in September, making further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve more likely.