---------------------------------------------------------------- Snapshot at: 07:33 / 2033 GMT ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stock Markets
NetChng
NetChng S&P/ASX 200
4,881.18 +6.16 NZSX 50
6,225.28
-5.1 DJIA
16,631.79 +146.80 Nikkei
16,140.34 +224.55 NASDAQ
4,557.20 +14.60 FTSE
6,012.81 +145.63 S&P 500
1,943.59 +13.79 Hang Seng
18,888.75 -303.70 SPI 200 Fut
4,853.00 +14.00 STI
2,603.40 -16.56 SSEC
2,741.42 -187.48 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Bonds
NetChg
NetChg AU 10 YR Bond
2.396 -0.008 US 10 YR Bond
1.697 -0.045 NZ 10 YR Bond
3.000 -0.020 US 30 YR Bond
2.571 -0.028 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Currencies
1700GMT
1700GMT AUD US$
0.7235 0.7176 NZD US$
0.6719 0.6666 EUR US$
1.1036 1.1030 Yen US$
112.78 112.17 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Gold (Lon)
1,236.00
Silver (Lon)
15.18 Gold (NY)
1,228.96
Light Crude
32.91 TRJCRB Index
162.64 +1.14 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Overnight market action with latest New York figures.
EQUITIES
NEW YORK - Wall Street gained on Thursday as strong U.S. manufacturing data pointed to a recovery in the struggling sector and some investors saw opportunities after weeks of volatility.
Orders for U.S. durable goods rose more than expected in January as demand picked up across the board, offering a ray of hope for the downtrodden manufacturing sector.
At 1:42 p.m., the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 0.77 percent at 16,612.34 points and the S&P 500 .SPX had gained 0.6 percent to 1,941.31. The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC was up 0.36 percent to 4,558.77.
For a full report, double click on .N
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LONDON - Britain's top share index closed higher on Thursday, as a rally in Lloyds LLOY.L and RSA RSA.L following their results led gains by financial-services shares.
The UK banking index .FTNMX8350 surged 6.1 percent, the biggest one-day percentage gain in more than four years, helping the FTSE 100 index .FTSE to close 2.5 percent higher. The gains came after the index dropped nearly 3 percent in the previous two sessions.
For a full report, double click on .L
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TOKYO - Japanese stocks rose in choppy trade on Thursday after the yen resumed its weakening trend against the U.S. dollar, lifting exporters' share prices and broader market sentiment. The Nikkei share average .N225 gained 1.4 percent to 16,140.34. Japan's benchmark index rose on an overnight bounce in oil prices during its morning session, then added to those gains in the afternoon as the yen moved away from its recent highs.
For a full report, double click on .T
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SYDNEY - Australian shares are set to open tentatively higher, buoyed by gains offshore and with energy stocks climbing on hopes major oil producers will cut output, but the mining sector will come under pressure on worries about global growth.
Local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.4 percent to 4,856.0 to sit at a 25.2-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark closed up 0.1 percent on Thursday.
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FOREIGN EXCHANGE
NEW YORK - Gains in U.S. and European stocks helped the dollar and sterling climb against safe-haven currencies like the yen on Thursday as traders looked to Federal Reserve speakers later in the day for fresh direction on the U.S. rates outlook.
As doubt continued to grow about whether the Fed can raise rates in March, or indeed at all this year, the dollar struggled to make significant headway with the euro down 0.1 percent at $1.1000 EUR=EBS .
For a full report, double click on USD/
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TREASURIES
NEW YORK - U.S. Treasury yields fell on Thursday as investors remained cautious on the outlook for global growth, with yields also undergoing a sharp, if brief, drop after the government postponed its seven-year note auction.
U.S. benchmark 10-year Treasury notes US10YT=RR were last up 12/32 in price to yield 1.70 percent, down from 1.74 percent late Wednesday.
For a full report, double click on US/
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COMMODITIES
GOLD
NEW YORK/LONDON - Spot gold rose on Thursday, buoyed by a strong technical formation and the potential for a bullish "golden cross" to form, while the futures market pared losses after feeling earlier pressure from the strong equity markets.
Spot gold XAU= was up 0.6 percent at $1,235.70 an ounce at 3:13 p.m. EST (2013 GMT), heading for a third straight day of gains but remaining below the one-year high of $1,260.60 reached on Feb. 11.
For a full report, double click on GOL/
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BASE METALS
LONDON - Copper prices fell on Thursday, reversing earlier gains as worries about demand in top consumer China were reinforced by equity market losses in Shanghai, but output cuts to help balance the market limited the losses.
Benchmark copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange ended down 0.8 percent at $4,602. Earlier this week, prices touched a two-week high of $4,701 a tonne.
For a full report, double click on MET/L
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OIL
NEW YORK - Crude futures jumped in late afternoon trading Thursday, rebounding as the market focused on an upcoming meeting of major oil producers and news of drilling deferments and job cuts in the domestic oil industry.
U.S. crude oil futures settled up 92 cents, or 2.86 percent, at $33.07 a barrel. It had earlier slide more than $1 at the session low.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 traded 56 cents higher at $33.97 a barrel.
For a full report, double click on O/R
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