Stocks, Commodities Rise on Fed Pledge; Yen, Dollar Weaken
By David Merritt
March 17 (Bloomberg) -- Stocks rose, driving the Stoxx Europe 600 Index to a 17-month high, and commodities rallied after the Federal Reserve pledged to keep interest rates at a record low and earnings in Europe beat analysts’ estimates. The yen and the dollar weakened.
The Stoxx 600 advanced 1 percent at 9:33 a.m. in New York, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.3 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 1.6 percent. Copper and crude oil increased for a second day. The yen fell against 15 of its 16 most-traded counterparts and the dollar declined against 10.
The Fed yesterday signaled the U.S. recovery isn’t strong enough to stoke inflation or justify higher borrowing costs, an assessment reinforced today by a bigger-than-estimated decrease in producer prices. The Bank of Japan doubled a lending program aimed at stoking credit growth to $222 billion, while investor confidence was boosted in Europe as earnings from UniCredit SpA and Inditex SA exceeded predictions.
“Steps like these are helping grease the wheels of the recovery,” said Chris Hall, who helps manage about $3.3 billion at Argo Investments in Adelaide, Australia. “It’s clear the Fed is going to keep rates very accommodative to stimulate the growth recovery. Japan’s way is to try and make credit easier to get.”
The S&P 500 climbed for a third straight day and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced for a seventh, its longest streak since August. Producer prices in the U.S. fell 0.6 percent in February, the Labor Department said, compared with a 0.2 percent decrease estimated on average by economists in a Bloomberg survey.
UniCredit, Inditex
The MSCI World Index of 23 developed nations’ stocks rose 0.5 percent. Rio Tinto Group, the world’s third-largest mining company, led basic-resource producers higher, gaining 2.1 percent in London. UniCredit, Italy’s biggest bank, surged 6 percent in Milan. Inditex SA, the world’s largest clothing retailer, jumped 4.6 percent in Madrid. In Asian trading, LG Electronics Inc., the world’s third-largest mobile-phone maker, gained 2.9 percent in Seoul.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index gained 1.6 percent to a two-month high. Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite Index surged 3.3 percent, the most since July, and South Korea’s Kospi Index climbed 2.1 percent, erasing this year’s losses. Qatar’s DSM 20 Index advanced 3.8 percent to the highest in more than four months after the government said domestic banks will be allowed to trade shares.
Commodities Rally
Copper for delivery in three months surged 1.2 percent to $7,500 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange and zinc rallied 1.7 percent to lead gains in industrial metals. Crude oil advanced 1.1 percent to $82.59 a barrel in New York trading, extending yesterday’s 2.4 percent jump.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its 12-month outlook for returns from commodities to 17.6 percent and said the biggest gains probably will be in crude, copper, corn and platinum.
The yen dropped most against higher-yielding currencies, depreciating 1.2 percent against the South African rand and 0.6 percent versus the South Korean won. Canada’s dollar rose as much as 0.4 percent compared with its U.S. counterpart, to trade at the strongest level in almost two years.
The pound strengthened as much as 0.9 percent against the dollar after U.K. jobless claims unexpectedly fell in February at the fastest pace since 1997 and minutes of the Bank of England’s March 4 meeting showed policy makers voted unanimously to maintain interest rates at a record low and keep bond purchases on hold.
Greek Bonds Rise
Greek bonds rose after Standard & Poor’s said yesterday it isn’t reviewing the nation’s BBB+ rating for a downgrade as the government pushes ahead with efforts to narrow its budget deficit, the biggest in Europe. The yield on the two-year note dropped 11 basis points to 4.42 percent.
The cost of insuring against losses on European corporate bonds using credit-default swaps fell, with the Markit iTraxx Crossover Index of 50 mostly high-yield borrowers declining 10 basis points to 409, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. The drop signals an improvement in investor perceptions of credit quality and sent the index close to the lowest level since Jan. 18.
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