Currencies

• EUR/USD The euro gained against the dollar on prospects a capital backstop for European lenders will help stem the region's debt crisis.
  • The European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet yesterday announced a bond- purchase program to tackle the debt crisis.
  • The euro traded at $1.3432 as of 6:50 a.m. in London from $1.3437 in New York yesterday.
  
  

• USD/JPY The yen was seen ranging between 76.57 and 76.72 since Thursday.
  • It was at 76.628 yen around 7:30 a.m. London time.
  
  

• GBP/USD The pound slumped against the dollar yesterday after the Bank of England reactivated its bond- purchase program and kept its benchmark interest rate at a record low to help revive the U.K.'s faltering economy. The British currency rebounded and continued to rise this morning.
  • The pound was trading at $1.544 around 7 a.m. London time, before dropping to $1.5275 on Thursday.

Commodities

• Gold futures rose as commodities and equities rallied amid optimism that European officials were making progress in taming the region's sovereign-debt crisis.
  • Gold futures for December delivery gained $11.60, or 0.7 percent, to settle at $1,653.20 an ounce at 1:40 p.m. on the Comex in New York.

• Oil headed for its first weekly gain in three in New York before an employment report forecast to show the U.S. gained jobs last month.
  • U.S. crude stockpiles declined last week to the lowest level since January, the Energy Department said Oct. 5.
  • Crude for November delivery gained as much as 49 cents to $83.08 a barrel, and was at $82.63 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 1:35 p.m. in Singapore.

Equities

• US Stocks rallied amid speculation policy makers will reach agreement to contain the sovereign-debt crisis and as the Bank of England expanded its bond-purchase program.
  • The S&P 500 rallied 1.8 percent to 1,164.97 at 4 p.m. New York time.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 183.38 points, or 1.7 percent, to 11,123.33 yesterday.


• European stocks rose as central banks moved to pump money into European economies and investors became more confident that leaders would step in to recapitalize ailing euro-zone banks.
  • The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose 3.7 percent.
  • Germany's DAX Index added 3.2 percent and France's CAC 40 Index advanced 3.4 percent.

• Asian stocks rose as optimism European officials will protect banks from the region's debt crisis boosted the earnings outlook for lenders and exporters.
  • Toyota Motor Corp., Asia's No. 1 automaker, advanced 1.7 percent in Tokyo.
  • The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 2.5 percent to 113.39 as of 1:22 p.m. in Tokyo.
  • Japan's Nikkei 225 (NKY) Stock Average gained 1.4 percent.
  • Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index advanced 3.5 percent.

Sources: Bloomberg, FT