Stocks on Wall Street rallied across the board as a meeting of European leaders ended with assurances that a default by Greece will be avoided.Increased monitoring of Greece's finances was promised, though there will be no direct aid for now.A better-than
Stocks on Wall Street rallied across the board as a meeting of European leaders ended with assurances that a default by Greece will be avoided.
Increased monitoring of Greece's finances was promised, though there will be no direct aid for now.
A better-than-expected reading of US jobless-claims data helped to lift the market, though some reports say the blizzards in the northeast has halted hiring and could affected some 150,000 jobs.
Reports on retail sales and business inventories were postponed until Friday due to severe weather.
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 105.81 points, or 1.1%, higher at 10,144.19, with 28 of the 30 component shares rising.
The S&P 500-share index was up 1.0% to 1078.47, while the Nadsaq Composite Index was up 1.4% to 2177.14.
Other markets
The Canadian sharemarket put on another strong performance, with the S&P/TSX Composite Index rising 149.16 points, or 1.3%, to 11,435.49.
European shares ended mostly lower on lack of detail about the Greek bailout.
After rising for the past three sessions, the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index ended the session up 0.4% at 241.84.
However, Spain's Ibex 35 index dropped 1.5% to 10,296.30, while the Greek ASE Composite index ended the day flat at 1940.31.
The French CAC-40 index declined 0.5% to 3616.75 and the German DAX index fell 0.6% to 5,503.93.
The UK FTSE 100 index ended the session up 0.6% at 5161.48, with commodity-related stocks helping to limit downside.
In Asia, Hong Kong shares jumped 1.9% after data showed lower-than-expected inflation in China, while Seoul's main stock index climbed 1.8%, helped by gains in financial firms and companies with strong China exposure.
Most other Asian markets also rose. Japan's market was closed for National Foundation Day and Taiwan's was shut for Pre-Chinese New Year.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rose 368.47 points to 20,290.69, its third consecutive gain. In Seoul, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or Kospi, advanced 27.69 points to 1597.81,
Commodities: Oil down, gold up
Crude futures dropped ahead of data expected to show rising US oil supplies and weak demand.
Light, sweet crude for March delivery traded 74USc, or 1%, lower at $US73.78 a barrel in New York. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded 32USc lower at $US72.22 a barrel.
Gold futures edged higher. April gold was up $US3.30, or 0.3%, at $US1079.60 an ounce in New York.
Currencies: Euro down
The euro extended its losses against the other major currencies amid the lack of detail on the euro-zone countries' show of support for Greece.
The euro's decline below $US1.3650 takes it back to levels seen on Monday, effectively erasing the advance from efforts to resolve Greece’s debt problem.
The euro slumped to $US1.3644 from $US1.3730 late on Wednesday. The euro weakened to ¥122.50 from ¥123.52.
The dollar moved to ¥89.78 from ¥89.96. The pound strengthened to $¨ß1.5651 from $¨ß1.5585.
