U.S. stocks soared on Friday, extending gains posted in the prior session, as investors cheered a series of steps by governments worldwide to contain the spiraling credit crisis.

Financials led the rally, which added to gains posted on Thursday, Wall Street's best day in six years. The Nasdaq was up more than 5 percent while the S&P 500 added more than 3 percent in the first minutes of trading.

Investor spirits rose after U.S. authorities, led by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, said they were working on a plan to mop up hundreds of billions of dollars of bad debt from banks' balance sheets.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 251.27 points, or 2.26 percent, at 11,268.35. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 36.76 points, or 3.05 percent, at 1,243.27. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 112.31 points, or 5.11 percent, at 2,311.41

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