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Stock Markets
S&P/ASX 200 5,245.43 +33.38 NZSX 50 4,913.03 +47.87
DJIA 16,490.16 +116.30 Nikkei 15,808.73 +386.33
NASDAQ 4,214.83 +31.81 FTSE 6,819.86 +53.00
S&P 500 1,848.54 +9.66 Hang Seng 22,791.28 +110.72
SPI 200 Fut 5,229.00 +24.00 TRJCRB Index 277.84 +1.07
Bonds (Yield)
AU 10 YR Bond 4.195 -0.015 US 10 YR Bond 2.880 +0.011
NZ 10 YR Bond 4.710 -0.010 US 30 YR Bond 3.806 +0.006
Currencies (Prev at 7pm NZST)
AUD US$ 0.8912 0.8914 NZD US$ 0.8338 0.8340
EUR US$ 1.3600 1.3638 Yen US$ 104.57 104.39
Commodities
Gold (Lon) 1236.00 Silver (Lon) 20.090
Gold (NY) 1244.71 Light Crude 94.26
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Overnight market action with latest New York figures.
EQUITIES
NEW YORK - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday, with the S&P 500
hitting a record high after strong earnings from Bank of America
and data pointed to improvement in the economy.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 124.04 points
or 0.76 percent, to 16,497.90. The S&P 500 gained 10.28
points or 0.56 percent, to 1,849.16, just off a record intraday
high of 1,850.84. The Nasdaq Composite added 29.2 points
or 0.70 percent, to 4,212.216.
For a full report, double click on .N
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LONDON - Britain's top equity index rose on Wednesday to set
its highest closing level in eight months, as the World Bank's
upward revision of global growth forecasts buoyed the market.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index finished up by 0.8
percent, or 53 points, at 6,819.86 points - marking its highest
closing level since late May 2013.
For a full report, double click on .L
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TOKYO - Tokyo's Nikkei stock average climbed 2.5 percent on
Wednesday, its biggest one-day gain in four months, buoyed by a
robust U.S. retail sales report that soothed concerns the pace
of growth in the world's largest economy was slowing.
The Nikkei ended 386.33 points higher at 15,808.73,
breaking above its 25-day moving average of 15,702.72 and
setting its sights on the five-day moving average of 15,828.99.
The broader Topix index advanced 2 percent to
1,294.52 on Wednesday, with 2.69 billion shares changing hands,
the lowest since Dec. 27.
For a full report, double click on .T
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SYDNEY - Australian shares are set to open higher on
Thursday, buoyed by gains on Wall Street, with miners likely to
rise on upbeat U.S. economic data and a raised forecast for
global growth from the World Bank.
Local share price index futures rose 0.5 percent to
5,230, but that was a 15.4-point discount to the underlying
S&P/ASX 200 index . The benchmark rose 0.6 percent on
Wednesday in its biggest one-day points gain in three weeks.
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FOREIGN EXCHANGE
NEW YORK - The dollar index gained for a second straight day
on Wednesday, helped by strong U.S. regional manufacturing and
price data that lifted the greenback further from a one-month
low against the yen and sent the Canadian dollar to a fresh
four-year low.
The dollar was up 0.5 percent against a basket of
currencies to 81.104. It rose 0.3 percent to 104.560 yen ,
building on Tuesday's recovery, when it rallied more than 1
percent.
For a full report, double click on USD/
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TREASURIES
NEW YORK - U.S. Treasuries yields rose on Wednesday after
U.S. producer prices recorded their largest increase in six
months in December, raising expectations that inflation may
start picking up and potentially bring forward the timeline in
which the Federal Reserve will start raising rates.
Five-year notes were last down 6/32 in price to
yield 1.691 percent, up from 1.647 percent late on Tuesday. The
notes have given back more than half of their gains made on
Friday and Monday, after a weaker-than-expected employment
report for December sparked a strong short-covering rally.
Benchmark 10-year notes were last down 8/32 in
price to yield 2.906 percent, up from 2.869 percent late on
Tuesday. Thirty-year bonds fell 14/32 in price to
yield 3.830 percent, up from 3.800 percent.
For a full report, double click on US/
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COMMODITIES
GOLD
NEW YORK/LONDON - Gold fell for a second session on
Wednesday as the dollar rallied after data showed U.S. producer
prices rose sharply in December but there were few signs of any
sustained price pressures.
Spot gold dropped 0.5 percent to $1,238.79 an ounce
by 1:41 p.m. EST (1841 GMT).
U.S. COMEX gold futures for February delivery were
down $6.70 to $1,238.70 an ounce, with trading volume about 45
percent below its 30-day average, preliminary Reuters data
showed.
For a full report, double click on GOL/
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BASE METALS
LONDON - Nickel prices hit two-month highs on Wednesday due
to supply concerns following an Indonesian ban on unprocessed
ore exports, but gains are likely to be capped by weakness in
the stainless steel market and ample ore stockpiles in China.
Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange fell
to a session low at $14,224 a tonne before recovering to a high
of $14,622, its highest since early November.
For a full report, double click on MET/L
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OIL
NEW YORK - U.S. oil prices rose $2 on Wednesday after
government data showed a larger-than-expected drop in
inventories while gains in Brent were capped by expectations for
increased Iranian and Libyan supply.
U.S. oil extended gains by $2.01 to a session high of
$94.60 by 1:19 p.m. EST (1819 GMT). The February contract
expires on Tuesday.
February Brent crude rose $1.16 to a session high of
$107.55 a barrel earlier in the session and was last trading up
75 cents at $107.15. The contract expires on Thursday.
For a full report, double click on O/R
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((Australia/New Zealand bureaux; +61 2 9373 1800/+64 4 802
7980))
Keywords: MORNINGCALL/