Wall Street Soars on Bank Relief Measures

Updated from 9:13 a.m. EDT

Stocks in the U.S. rocketed higher at Monday's open, as governments worldwide initiated massive emergency aid packages for struggling banks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 390 points to 8841, and the S&P 500 jumped 36 points to 935. The Nasdaq was better by 79 points at 1728.

During the previous week, the three major indices took a severe lashing as investors worried that stagnant credit markets weren't responding to curative efforts by the U.S. and other governments. The Dow and the S&P each dropped 18%, and the Nasdaq fell 15%.

The cost of borrowing appeared to relax slightly, as three-month dollar Libor fell 6.6 basis points to 4.75%. Overnight Libor rates were not assessed as U.S. bond markets were closed in observance of Columbus Day.

Over the weekend, central banks across the globe were initiating policies to offer liquidity to banks and bolster lending markets.

In the U.S., Interim Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability Neel Kashkari said in a statement Monday that the Treasury Department had enlisted law firm Simpson Thatcher to advise it on a plan to buy equity positions as a measure in its $700 billion relief package for financial firms.

The U.K. announced a plan to inject capital into three of its struggling banks. Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS Quote), Lloyds (LYG Quote) and HBOS will get up to $63 billion in government support, the U.K. government said.

Australia said it would guarantee all of its banks' deposits and international debt. The United Arab Emirates said it would guarantee its domestic bank deposits. France and Italy are expected to detail their own plans later Monday. Germany, meanwhile, was preparing to expand a bailout package for its banks to $680 billion.