Currencies

• EUR/USDThe euro climbed against the dollar after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said another round of quantitative easing may yet be needed, should the U.S. economy remain weak.
  • The U.S. currency declined to $1.4211 per euro from $1.4167 in New York yesterday and was trading at $1.4175 around 7 a.m. London time.


• USD/JPY The yen erased gains against the dollar amid speculation Japan will act to weaken the currency.
  • Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said today it would be "problematic" if recent one-sided currency movements continue.
  • The yen traded at 79.00 per dollar as of 6:48 a.m. in London from 78.98 yesterday in New York.


• GBP/USD The pound surged against the dollar yesterday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said policy makers will provide stimulus if needed.
  • It was 1.2 percent stronger at $1.6104, after weakening to $1.5781 on Tuesday. It was trading at $1.61170 around 7 a.m. London time.

Commodities

• Gold soars to a new record after Moody's Investors Service placed the U.S. credit rating on review for a downgrade and Europe's sovereign crisis persisted, increasing the demand for haven asset.
  • Immediate-delivery bullion climbed as much as 0.5 percent to $1,589.80 an ounce, and traded at $1,583.65 at 12:23 p.m. in Singapore.
  • Gold for August delivery in New York also gained to a record, rallying as much as 0.3 percent to $1,590.80 an ounce.

• Oil fell in New York on speculation an economic slowdown may temper fuel demand in the world's biggest crude consumer, after the U.S.'s credit rating was put under review for a downgrade.
  • Crude for August delivery fell as much as 51 cents to $97.54 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $97.72 at 1:28 p.m. Singapore time.

Equities

• U.S. stocks snapped a three-day slide as investors saw hope for further economic stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
  • The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index climbed 4.08 points, or 0.31%, to 1317.72.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished with a gain of 44.73 points, or 0.36%, at 12491.61.


• European stocks rose as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central bank is prepared to take additional action to support the economy.
  • Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) advanced 4.4 percent and Burberry Group Plc (BRBY) surged 6.5 percent as the U.K.'s largest luxury-goods maker reported first-quarter sales that beat analysts' estimates.
  • The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index (UKX) jumped 0.6 percent.
  • France's CAC 40 Index increased 0.5 percent, while Germany's DAX Index rallied 1.3 percent.

• Asian stocks fell for the third day this week after Moody's Investors Service put the U.S. under review for a credit-rating downgrade, hurting the outlook for exporters reliant on a global economic recovery.
  • Sony Corp. lost 0.9 percent as the yen advanced against the dollar for a fifth day.
  • The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.3 percent to 135.66 as of 2:31 p.m. in Tokyo.
  • Japan's Nikkei 225 (NKY) Stock Average lost 0.3 percent today.

Sources: Bloomberg, FT