Data, U.S. earnings boost stocks, euro

NEW YORK (Reuters) - World shares rose for a second day on Tuesday and the euro gained against the U.S. dollar as U.S. corporate earnings concern eased, while bullish German data also provided support.

Reports that Spain may be close to seeking a bailout and of Greece receiving more aid further boosted appetite for riskier assets, with European shares surging more than 1 percent on a rise in financial stocks.

U.S. stocks rose after stronger-than-expected earnings from big-name companies, including Johnson & Johnson and Goldman Sachs. Goldman posted a profit as revenue more than doubled.

"One of the biggest things coming into this earnings reporting season was this drum beat for how bad it was going to be," said Art Hogan, managing director of Lazard Capital Markets in New York.

"We've got a chance to get some of that back because the worst-case scenario is not playing out."

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 128.60 points, or 0.96 percent, to 13,552.83. The S&P 500 <.spx> gained 14.66 points, or 1.02 percent, to 1,454.79. The Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> added 33.03 points, or 1.08 percent, to 3,097.21.

Citigroup unexpectedly announced that Chief Executive Vikram Pandit had resigned effective immediately, along with Chief Operating Officer John Havens. Citi's shares rose 0.9 percent.

Major U.S. equity indexes were posting their best two-day rally in a month, bouncing back after closing their worst week in four months on Friday. The S&P 500 was less than 1 percent below its 2012 closing high set a month ago.

The closely watched monthly survey from the ZEW institute showed a better-than-expected improvement in German investor confidence, adding to recent signs that the euro zone's biggest economy is fighting hard to stave off the bloc's debt troubles.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 index <.fteu3> closed up 1.35 percent and an MSCI index of global shares <.world> rose 1.3 percent. The Spanish equity benchmark <.ibex> rose 3.4 percent.

European leaders meet in Brussels on Thursday and investors are looking for clues on whether Greece will be given support to allow it to stay in the euro and if Spain will ask for a bailout in the coming weeks, activating the European Central Bank's bond buying scheme.

EURO STRENGTHENS

The euro rose to a one-week high against the dollar and four-week high against the yen and sterling, with traders initially citing a Bloomberg report that Germany was open to a precautionary line of credit for Spain.

The single currency pared some gains after one of the sources of the report said his comments were "over interpreted.

The single currency was up 0.8 percent at $1.3048 after earlier hitting a session high of $1.3060.

"It's a risk-on market with good news out of Europe," said Marc Principato, director of SMB Forex Trading And Education in New York.

U.S. Treasuries prices fell as the strong U.S. earnings boosted stocks and reduced the appeal of safe-haven debt.

The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note was down 12/32, the yield at 1.7099 percent. The 30-year bond lost more than a full point in price, its yield up at 2.90 percent.

Crude oil prices fell, under pressure from ample U.S. crude supply and concerns about economic growth in Europe and China.

November Brent fell 0.7 percent to $115 a barrel and U.S. crude shed 0.1 percent to $91.73.

(Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak, Nick Olivari and Karen Brettell; Editing by Dan Grebler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/asian-shares-higher-u-data-citi-results-002808326--finance.html

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