Currencies

• EUR/USD The 17-nation currency advanced toward a one-week high against the dollar after Spain's borrowing costs fell yesterday when the country sold more than its maximum target of bills.
  • The euro rose 0.2 percent against the dollar to $1.3114 at 12:39 p.m. in Tokyo from yesterday in New York, when it touched $1.3132, the strongest since Dec. 13.

• USD/CAD The Canadian dollar increased the most in December against its U.S. counterpart as a rally in crude oil and stocks eased risk aversion.
  • The loonie appreciated 0.9 percent to C$1.0298 per U.S. dollar by 5 p.m. Toronto time. It rose as much as 1.2 percent, the most on an intraday basis since Nov. 30.

• AUD/USD New Zealand dollar reached one-week high as Asian equities extended a global stocks rally, boosting demand for higher-yielding assets.
  • The Australian dollar touched $1.0158, the most since Dec. 13, before trading at $1.0157 at 5:21 p.m. in Sydney, 0.8 percent above yesterday's close in New York.

Commodities

• Gold prices rose Wednesday, as investors ditched the metal's traditional hedge, the dollar, and set out in search for riskier assets, including stocks, currencies and precious metals.
  • On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery traded at USD1,624.45 a troy ounce in early Asian trading Wednesday, up 0 42%..


• Oil climbed for a third day in New York as investors bet that fuel demand may increase amid signs of an economic recovery and declining stockpiles in the U.S., the world's biggest crude consumer.
  • Crude for February delivery rose as much as $1.20 to $98.44 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Equities

• U.S Stocks climbed, giving the Standard & Poor's 500 Index its biggest gain of the month, as better-than-estimated housing starts added to expectations the world's largest economy will weather Europe's debt crisis.
  • The S&P 500 rose 3 percent to 1,241.30.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 337.32 points.

• European stocks posted their biggest rally this month as banks climbed after a report showed German business confidence unexpectedly rose for a second month.
  • The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 2 percent.
  • France's CAC 40 Index added 2.7 percent.
  • Germany's DAX Index jumped 3.1 percent.
  • U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index gained 1 percent.

• Asian stocks(MXAP) rose for a second day, with a benchmark index set for the biggest gain in almost three weeks, as China pledged support for exporters and small businesses and after improved U.S. and German economic data.
  • Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average (NKY) increased 1.3 percent.
  • South Korea's Kospi Index jumped 3.1 percent.

Sources: Bloomberg, FT