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Wall Street climbed over 1.3% as the major indices reached new 13-month highs. Energy and commodity stocks led the rally as a weakening greenback sent prices higher, including gold which reached a record high. 

Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, said the local economy would recover at a moderate pace with the inhibited bank lending and the fragile job market likely to prevent it from being as fast-paced as people would like. He also said interest rates would likely remain at their current record low levels for some time.

In economic news, retail sales increased by a better than expected 1.4% in October compared to the previous month. Forecasts were for a rise of 0.9%. Excluding automobiles, sales rose a weaker than anticipated 0.2% according to the Census Bureau report.

Elsewhere, manufacturing activity in New York State dropped from a five-year high 34.57 points in October to 23.51 in early November according to a New York Federal Reserve Bank report.

The Dow Jones put on 136.49 points, or 1.33%, to 10,406.96, the S&P 500 added 15.82 points, or 1.45%, to 1,109.30 and the NASDAQ rose 29.97 points, or 1.38%, to 2,197.85. 

Energy heavyweight Exxon Mobil gained 2.7%, while Chevron and ConocoPhillips rose 1.8% and 1.9%.

NYMEX light crude oil for December delivery climbed US$2.55 to settle at US$78.90 a barrel.

Gold miner Newmont and Barrick Gold added 2.8% and 2.6%.

COMEX gold for December delivery rallied US$22.50 to US$1,139.20 per ounce.

Other metals also rallied, lifting commodity plays. Aluminium producer Alcoa put on 3.3%.

Banks Morgan Stanley and Citigroup climbed 3.5% and 3.2% in a positive session for the sector.

Bank of America bucked the trend, shedding 0.7%.

Conglomerate General Electric put on 2.2%.

Lowe’s dipped 0.5% after the home improvement retailer reported a 30% fall in quarterly proft. However, a negative market reaction was mitigated by the company's optimistic outlook for the fourth quarter. Rival The Home Depot advanced 1.1%. 

Retailers Sears and Target put on 4.1% and 2.7%, while Wal-Mart edged 0.1% lower.

Aircraft manufacturer Boeing and machinery maker Caterpillar added 3.6% and 2.8%.

Cisco closed 0.7% dearer after increasing its bid for Norwegian video conferencing equipment maker Tandberg by 10%.

Intel rose 2.1% as it upgraded its quarterly dividend. Oracle also added 2.1%.

European Markets

European shares reached a 13-month high on the back of rising commodity stocks. Automakers were boosted following positive company news and economic data.

The UK benchmark FTSE 100 rose 86.29, or 1.63% to 5,382.67. The French CAC40 gained 57.15 points, or 1.50% to 3,863.16, while the German DAX put on 117.99, or 2.07% to 5,804.82. 

Resource stocks tracked the price of metals higher. Aussie peers Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton advanced 5.5% and 2.6%.

Xstrata, Antofagasta and Anglo American climbed 7.8%, 7.6% and 4.1% respectively.

Lonmin surged 9.3% after the company said it planned to increase production by 20% by 2013. Steelmaker ThyssenKrupp put on 4.5% after selling a scaffolding unit.

Energy heavyweights BG Group, Royal Dutch Shell and BP advanced 2.4%, 1.4% and 1.2%. Total added 1.6%.

Financials strengthened. In Germany Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank put on 3.1% and 1.6%.

HSBC and Barclays gained 2.6% and 1.3%. Societe Generale added 1.6%.

Insurers Prudential and Allianz rallied 2.1% each.

Daimler climbed 4.4% after UAE's Aabar Investments said it was considering raising its interest in the automaker.

A recovery in demand in the UK and Spain saw European car sales rise 11% in October.

Peugeot and Renault jumped 4.5% and 3.2%.

Japanese Markets

The Nikkei rose despite concerns that capital raisings would continue to dilute share holdings. The banks again weighed on the market, while a strong showing from the retailers capped losses.

The Nikkei 225 added 20.87, or 0.21% to 9,791.18.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Japan’s number one listed bank, slumped 5.5% on rumours it would seek to sell US$11.1 billion in shares.

Smaller rival, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group lost 5.9% after missing earnings forecasts. Mizhuo Financial Group retreated 3.9%.

Hitachi joined the banks in raising capital, reportedly around US$4.6 billion, sending its shares down 8.5%.

Chipmakers fell on lower prices for their goods. NEC and Toshiba lost 4.6% and 5.2% respectively.

The market saw 75% of stocks retreat, however strong gains by the retailers shored up the market.

Fast Retailing gained 5.2%, while Marui Group, which operations shops and credit cards, spiked 6.9% on a broker upgrade.

Heavyweight shipping line, Nippon Yusen K.K. put on 0.6%, while stocks exposed to currency fluctuations also proved resilient. Toyota put on 1.1%.

Hong Kong Markets

The Hang Seng approached the 23,000 point barrier Monday, 102% higher than March lows for the index. Banks and the miners were stronger, while investors were generally upbeat after a visit from the US President.

The Hang Seng spiked 390.35, or 1.73% to 22,943.98.

Bank of China spiked 2.3%, while ICBC added 2.4%. In a consistent day for the sector, Bank of Communications rose 2.2%.

HSBC spiked 2.6%.

Zijin Mining was up 6% and copper producer Jiangxi Copper surged 11.8%.

Another successful IPO saw food packaging company CPMC rise 31% at one stage before settling 13% higher.

Oil giants CNOOC gained 1.6% and PetroChina tacked on 1.3%.

Gome Electrical Appliances Holdings, China’s second largest electronics retailer, jumped 4.8%.

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Market Watch by egoli