Germany okays euro relief powers, markets perk up

Germany's Parliament approved new powers for the eurozone's crisis fund on Thursday, even as a debt-mired Greece braced for an international audit.

Germany's Parliament approved new powers for the eurozone's crisis fund on Thursday, even as a debt-mired Greece braced for an international audit.

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Germany thus became the 11th of 17 eurozone states to agree to beef up the €440-billion ($590 billion) European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and hand it new powers. The expansion also boosts Germany's contribution to €211 billion.

Global stocks were buoyed after the vote with most markets ending in the black. The Sensex also shot up 252.0 points, or 1.5%, to 16,698.1, while the Nifty rose 69.6 points to 5,015.5.