U.S. Stocks Surge; Vive la Eurozone!

U.S. stocks soared in response to news that European leaders reached agreement on some measures to tackle the Eurozone debt crisis on Wednesday night-Thursday morning at an emergency summit in Brussels.

The hope now is that Europe will be able to contain and lessen the debt malaise, and prevent the contagion from spreading to the rest of the global economy.

While some analysts have complained that the Euro debt deal may not go far enough, stock markets have enthusiastically embraced it.

Investors were also buoyed by a report that US economy grew in the third quarter at an annual rate of 2.5 percent, the fastest pace in a year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 339.51 points, or 2.86 percent, to close at 12,208.55; the Nasdaq jumped 87.96 points, or 3.32 percent, to 2,738.63; while the S&P 500 index climbed 42.59 points, or 3.43 percent, to 1284.59.

Indeed, the S&P 500 has surged more than 13 percent so far this month, putting it on pace to score its largest monthly gain in 37 years. The Dow is set to achieve its strongest month in almost 25 years.

European stock indices leapt by even higher magnitudes; France’s CAC-40 skyrocketed 6.28 percent; Germany’s DAX rose 5.35 percent, while the FTSE in the UK climbed 2.89 percent.

In the U.S., bank stocks performed especially superbly.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) surged 17 percent; JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE) soared 8.31 percent; while Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), jumped 9.70 percent.

Reflecting hopes for higher global energy demand, crude oil futures jumped more than 4 percent in New York.

Bonds fell as the yield on the 10-Year Treasury climbed to 2.40 percent from 2.20 percent.