World stocks measured in the MSCI All-Country World Index inched up 0.1 percent to 300.72, hovering near a six-week high of 301.61 reached on Monday, though they were still up 66 percent from a low hit one year ago.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index was flat, though Greece’s share benchmark advanced 1.8 percent as worries over the country’s debt problems eased after Athens last week announced more austerity measures and secured 5 billion euros of debt funding from the market.

U.S. stock index futures gained 0.1 to 0.3 percent, indicating a higher start for Wall Street ahead of wholesale inventories data for January.

“Equity markets have rebounded sharply since last year’s bear-market trough, with the S&P 500 rising almost 70 percent,” Barclays Wealth said in a note. “We believe there is more room for equity market gains, albeit probably at a slower pace than registered in the past 12 months.”

Asian shares outside of Japan put on 0.4 percent to hit a seven-week high as Chinese data showed exports and imports in February were better than expected.

The news boosted copper prices and the Australian dollar, which touched a seven-week high as China is the biggest buyer of Australia’s commodity exports.

Copper prices advanced 0.8 percent and gold was 0.6 percent higher. Oil prices advanced 0.5 percent to trade below $82 a barrel.

DEBT ISSUANCE

Euro zone government bond prices drifted lower in what could be the second-heaviest week of supply so far this year.

Germany sold 5 billion euros of two-year Schatz and 1 billion euros of an index-linked 10-year Bundei, while Portugal placed 990 million euros of 2021 bond.

The June Bund future was down nine ticks at 122.74. The two-year Schatz yield was 3 basis points higher at 0.909 percent, while the 10-year Bund yield was up 1 basis point at 3.146 percent.

Yields on benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury were up 1.7 basis points at 3.7177 percent.

Posted by Shayne Heffernan on Mar 10th, 2010and filed underLatest News, USA.You can follow any responses to this entry through theRSS 2.0You can leave a response by filling following comment form or trackback to this entry from your site