Additionally, US President Joe Biden said Washington was working with allies on a release of oil from strategic reserves after crude prices spiked. That helped ease the nerves of equity investors a bit, even as Brent crude rose another 2% to $101 a barrel.

As of 9:30 a.m., the BSE Sensex reigned at 55,558.24, up 1,028.33 points or 1.89%. The NSE Nifty stood at 16,572.90, up 324.95 points or 2%. The Indian VIX fell 15% to 27.19.

“It’s likely to be a downside buy, but with a lot of near-term volatility,” said Nilesh Shah, Group Chairman and CEO, Kotak Mahindra AMC.

Sensex IndusInd Bank shares climbed 4.4% to Rs 914.40. Tata Steel advanced 3.5% to Rs 1,112. Mahindra & Mahindra added 3.01% to Rs 819.80. Bajaj Finserv, Wipro, UltraTech Cement, TCS and Bajaj Finance were up 3%. Banks such as SBI, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank each grew by more than 2%.

Asian markets rallied with Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 up 1.4% in morning trade and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 up 0.5%. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.2% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged higher.

Economists, however, were concerned about the negative impact of oil prices on importers such as India.

“A sustained rise in oil and food prices would have adverse effects on Asian economies, manifesting in higher inflation, weaker current and fiscal balances, and squeezing economic growth. In such a scenario, the “India, Thailand and the Philippines are the biggest losers, while Indonesia would be relative beneficiaries,” Nomura India said.

Meanwhile, explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv early on Friday as Russian forces continued a full-scale invasion that left more than 100 Ukrainians dead in the first full day of fighting and could possibly rewrite the global post-cold. War Security Order, PTI reported.