Akhir 12, 1432 H/March 17, 2011, SPA -- Major Wall Street indices climbed sharply on Thursday, a reprieve after three straight days of losses, as Japanese authorities continued working to avoid a nuclear meltdown at a power plant damaged in last week's 9.0 magnitude earthquake, according to dpa. The dollar meanwhile continued plunging in value against the Japanese yen, which has gained unprecedented strength against major currencies in anticipation that investors will buy up the currency to help with the country's reconstruction. Finance ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrial nations were to hold a conference call on Friday to discuss the rising yen and market turmoil. US investors were also buoyed by a better than expected earnings report from package firm FedEx, while a key gauge of the US economy by the private Conference Board rose for the eighth straight month. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 161.29 points, or 1.39 per cent, to 11,774.59. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index surged 16.84 points, or 1.34 per cent, to 1,273.72. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 19.23 points, or 0.73 per cent, to 2,636.05. The dollar fell against the Japanese currency to 78.87 yen from 79.85 yen on Wednesday. The US currency fell against the euro to 71.32 euro cents from 71.99 euro cents on Wednesday.
