Wall Street is holding near its records after the Federal Reserve kicked off its efforts to prevent a recession with a bigger-than-usual cut to interest rates.

Asian markets forged higher on Thursday after the Federal Reserve kicked off its efforts to prevent a recession in the U.S. with a bigger-than-usual cut to interest rates. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index jumped 2.5% to 37,284.43. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1% to 17,840.93.

Wall Street is rising toward records as a delayed reaction of jubilation sweeps markets following the Federal Reserve’s big cut to interest rates. The S&P 500 was 1.5% higher in

European markets traded lower on Friday after Asian stocks surged, as a rally driven by the Federal Reserve’s big cut to interest rates faded.