Currencies

• EUR/USDThe euro fell against the dollar as European leaders prepare for a summit tomorrow on how to contain the region's debt crisis.
  • The 17-nation currency slid to $1.4139 as of 6:22 a.m. in London from $1.4156 in New York yesterday


• USD/JPY The dollar rose versus the yen in the early trading hours of today as President Barack Obama endorsed deficit-cutting measures proposed easing concern the U.S. is moving closer to default. However, it started decreasing again.
  • The dollar fetched 79.021 yen around 9:30 a.m. London time while earlier it reached 79.312.


• GBP/USD The U.S. dollar gained against the British pound in the early trading hours of Wednesday after losing ground as appetite for risky assets revived.
  • Sterling was trading $1.61265 around 7:30 a.m. London time, down from yesterday's high of $1.61776.

Commodities

• Gold rebounded after dropping from a record as concern that Europe's leaders will struggle to resolve the region's sovereign-debt crisis at a meeting tomorrow increased demand for haven asset.
  • Immediate-delivery gold gained as much as 0.3 percent to $1,592.68 an ounce and was at $1,589.95 at 1:18 p.m. in Singapore.
  • Gold for August delivery in New York fell as much as 0.9 percent to $1,587 an ounce.

• Oil advanced for a second day in New York as investors bet that shrinking stockpiles and signs of economic recovery in the U.S. indicate fuel demand will increase in the world's biggest crude-consuming nation.
  • Crude for August delivery increased as much as 85 cents to $98.35 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $98.33 at 1:07 p.m. Sydney time.

Equities

• U.S. stocks rose as President Barack Obama embraced a $3.7 trillion debt-cutting plan by a bipartisan group of senators that would combine tax increases and spending cuts.
  • The news spurred optimism that lawmakers will reach an agreement that will help the nation avoid default.
  • The S&P 500 gained 1.6 percent to 1,326.73 at 4 p.m. in New York..
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 202.26 points, or 1.6 percent, to 12,587.42.


• European stocks gained as companies from Novartis AG (NOVN) to International Business Machines Corp. reported earnings that beat estimates.
  • Novartis, Europe's second-biggest drug maker by sales, climbed the most in three months.
  • The U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.7 percent.
  • France's CAC 40 and Germany's DAX advanced 1.2 percent.

• Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark index set to close at its highest level in a week, on optimism U.S. lawmakers will reach an agreement to cut the budget deficit and after Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s profit topped estimates, boosting the earnings outlook for exporters.
  • Equity futures rose after U.S. markets closed as Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s profit topped estimates on record iPhone and iPad sales.
  • Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea's biggest exporter of consumer electronics, climbed 3.4 percent in Seoul.
  • The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.9 percent to 136.42 as of 1:49 p.m. in Tokyo.
  • Japan's Nikkei 225 (NKY) Stock Average rose 1.2 percent.
  • Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.1 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.4 percent.

Sources: Bloomberg, FT