BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S.-traded shares of the major European drug makers were on a roll Wednesday morning, stoked by an earlier rally in the European markets. Leading the charge was Bayer AG BAYRY +4.25% , with shares up almost 5% at $81.35, followed by Novo Nordisk A/S NVO +4.08% , up 4% at $130.37. Trading up at least 2% were AstraZeneca PLC AZN +2.11% , Shire PLC SHPGY +1.91% , Novartis AG NVS +2.22% , Roche RHHBY +2.67% , and Sanofi-Aventis SNY +3.01% . The drug sector's two leading indexes also got a boost. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index DRG +1.83% jumped 1.6% to 323 and the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index BTK +1.04% hopped 1.4% to 1416.
