In the US tonight, the Dow ended up 87.01 points to close at 12,741.86, its best close ever.
The S&P 500 rose 11.04 points to 1,455.30, boosted by gains in the financial sector, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 28.50 points to 2,488.38.
In Asia today, the Nikkei closed up 144.59 points at 17,897.23, while the Hang Seng ended the morning up 319.11 points at 20,529.02.
New York's main oil contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, was up three cents at $58.03 per barrel after falling $1.06 to $58.00 in late US trades overnight.