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In the US, the Dow continued to trade around the gain line for the third straight session in light trade. Bank and financial stocks, including some of the most imperilled companies during the GFC, showed the most strength.

In economic news, the US Commerce Department said wholesale inventories fell 0.2% in January, indicating that soon companies will need to ramp up production as consumer demand increases.

The Dow Jones rose 2.95 points, or 0.03%, to 10,567.33, the S&P 500 gained 5.16 points, or 0.45%, to 1,145.61 and the NASDAQ picked up 18.27 points, or 0.78%, to 2,358.95.

Citigroup added to yesterday’s surge, tacking on another 3.7%, while other retail banks were also stronger, including Bank of America and Wells Fargo, up 1.9% and 2%.

AIG jumped 10.6% after investors were happy with the company’s recent asset sales and efforts to repay debt.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were up 2.8% and 2.3% on the general strengthening in the sector.

Among tech stocks, Cisco lost 1% as investors booked profits from recent strong gains.

Search engine Google added 2.9%, while rival Yahoo! posted a 1.6% rise.

Boeing rose 3.3%, with the Dow component trading at 52-week highs.

American Eagle soared 6.1% after the clothing retailer posted better than anticipated results. Rival Abercrombie & Fitch put on 0.8%.

Facet Biotech surged 66% to $27 per share after Abbott Labs said it would acquire the company for that amount.

NYMEX light crude oil rose US60c to settle at US$82.09 per barrel. Exxon Mobil added just 0.7% despite oil touching eight-week highs.

COMEX gold fell US$14.20 to close at US$1,108.10 an ounce.

European Markets

European shares returned to gains Wednesday with banks stronger, while resource stocks were also up. The Greek government’s comments that its financial crisis was over, with support coming from the US government, helped lift markets across the continent.

The benchmark UK FTSE 100 advanced 38.27, or 0.68% to 5,640.57. The French CAC40 climbed 33.54, or 0.86% to 3,943.55. The German DAX put on 50.83, or 0.86% to 5,936.72.

Among the banks, the major gainers were in Greece where Alpha Bank and EFG Eurobank Ergasias SA, the country’s third and second largest lenders, soared 6.2% and 4.9%.

Barclays was up 0.6%, while Lloyds and RBS jumped 3.9% and 3.6%.

BNP Paribas advanced 1%, while in Germany Deutsche Bank added 1.5%.

Among the miners, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto gained 1.1% and 1.8% respectively. The gains came despite a mixed day for base metal prices on the London Metals Exchange.

Anglo American rallied 2.3%.

In oil plays, BP and Royal Dutch Shell added 0.9% and 1.5% respectively.

Brewer Carlsberg fell 1.5% on reports Russia may ban the sale of beer from kiosks.

Japanese Markets

Japan’s Nikkei closed flat Wednesday after not moving more than 41 points either side of the gain line for the entire session. A year on to the day from the lowest close in over 26 years and the Nikkei has gained 50%.

The Nikkei 225 lost 3.73, or 0.04% to 10,563.92.

Shipping stocks lost the most ground after the Baltic Dry Index fell 1.5%. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines shed 2.3% and 1.3%.

Mobile-phone carriers KDDI Corp and Softbank slid 1.5% and 1.6%.

Casio Computer rallied 3.4% on reports the company will return to profit next financial year.

Sony and Canon added 1.4% and 0.9%.

Toyota dropped 1.4% following an incident involving the Prius in the US.

Nisshin Steel surged 6.9% ahead of being added to the Nikkei 225.

Hong Kong Markets

The Hang Seng was virtually unchanged as investors booked profit from recent strong gains. Property stocks were weaker, while earnings from some of the major plays buoyed the market.

The Hang Seng added 0.74 points to 21,208.29.

In a wrap of the banks, Bank of China gained 0.5%, while Bank of Communications put on 0.4%.

HSBC shed 1.1%.

One of the market strongest gainers was CITIC Pacific. The property group gained 7.5% after its profit out-stripped expectations by nearly 20%.

State-controlled China Overseas Land & Investment fell 1.3%. Chinese focused Hang Lung Properties shed 1.3%.

Cathay Pacific Airways rose 4.7% as investors snap up stocks ahead of the airline’s reporting tonight. Its stocks are at a 20-month high.

The shippers were weaker as the Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping costs, fell 1.5%. China Cosco shed 1.3%.

Off-shore oil producer Cnooc put on 1.1%.

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Market Watch by egoli