New York - US stocks jumped in opening trade on Wednesday, following European bourses, which rose sharply on speculation of further monetary stimulus.
Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 16 239.61, up 190.48 points.
The broad-based S&P 500 rose 1.33% to 1 909.14, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.55% at 4 587.34.
Exchanges in London, Paris and Frankfurt were up more than 2% after weak eurozone inflation data prompted talk that the European Central Bank could boost its quantitative easing stimulus program.
Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare also cited technical factors behind the early US gains after the market tested an August low Tuesday, but failed to breach it.