Stock market fixing:
Nikkei 225 +340.23 +2.60% 13,254.89
Topix +29.56 +2.40% 1,277.27
FTSE +31.60 +0.58% 5,486.10
DAX +42.69 +0.65% 6,561.39
CAC +61.98 +1.41% 4,448.33
Dow +40.30 +0.35% 11,656.07
NASDAQ +28.54 +1.21% 2,378.37
S&P +4.31 +0.34% 1,289.19
10yr Note +0.4100 +0.102% 4.048%
NYMEX Crude Oil -0.59 -0.50% 118.58
Gold -3.10 -0.35% 883.00

Japan's stocks rose the most in two weeks as falling oil prices lifted expectations production costs will ease and spending will rebound.
Mazda Motor Corp. led carmakers to their biggest jump in two weeks, while Bridgestone Corp., the world's biggest tiremaker, soared the most in four months after oil sank for a third day. Canon Inc., the world's biggest maker of digital cameras, jumped on speculation lower energy costs will boost consumer spending power.
Crude prices, which have risen 64% in the past 12 months and spurred the fastest inflation in a decade in Japan, lost 1.8% to $119.17 a barrel Tuesday, the lowest since May 5. Rising costs and weakening demand have dented corporate profits and caused production, household spending and exports to fall in June.

European stocks rose for a second day after BNP Paribas SA's earnings beat analysts' estimates, Xstrata Plc made a hostile bid for Lonmin Plc and the Federal Reserve indicated interest rates are on hold.
BNP jumped the most in two weeks after pretax profit at its investment bank eased concern France's biggest bank will have to raise capital. Lonmin surged 48 percent as Xstrata offered $9.8 billion for the platinum producer. Daimler AG and Air France-KLM Group gained as oil fell to a three-month low.
Stocks pared gains after Freddie Mac, the second-largest U.S. mortgage-finance company, posted its fourth straight quarterly loss and said it will cut the common-stock dividend.

Stocks on Wall Street jumped Wednesday, ending a choppy session in positive territory, as investors welcomed falling oil prices, Cisco Systems' improved earnings and talk of a big share buyback plan at Microsoft.

Oil prices: U.S. light crude oil for September delivery settled 59 cents lower at $118.58 a barrel, a three-month low. Prices had been even lower after the weekly oil inventories report showed gas supplies fell more than expected and crude supplies unexpectedly grew.
Freddie Mac disappoints again: Dragging on stocks in the morning was a weaker-than-expected second-quarter report from the troubled mortgage financer. Freddie also slashed its dividend and said it doubled its reserves for bad loans from the previous quarter. Freddie and its sister company, Fannie Mae, which together back or hold nearly half of all U.S. mortgage debt, have lost billions of dollars over the last year due to bad loans. Both companies' stocks have been pummeled. On Wednesday, Freddie lost over 19% and Fannie - which reports Friday - fell almost 15%.
Cisco and other results: Giving the tech sector some support was Cisco, which reported better-than-expected quarterly sales and earnings late Tuesday, but also lowered its fiscal first-quarter growth forecast.
AIG slipped ahead of its quarterly earnings report, due out after the close. The insurer and Dow component is expected to have earned 63 cents per share versus a profit of $1.77 per share.
In other news, Microsoft could buy back up to $20 billion of its stock as a means of boosting its lagging share price, according to reports that cited a top software analyst at brokerage UBS. Shares of the Dow component gained 3%.

The yen fell to the lowest since January against the dollar after Japan's government said the economy is ``deteriorating,'' acknowledging for the first time that the country's longest postwar expansion has probably ended.
Euro was under pressure as investors speculate ECB will keep its key interest rate at a seven-year high of 4.25% today, according to the forecasts of economists. ECB President Jean- Claude Trichet will hold a press conference after the rate decision.
Factory orders in Germany, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, declined 2.9% from May, the Economy Ministry said Wednesday. That's the biggest drop since July 2007.

EUR/USD printed session highs around $1.5515, but weak German economic data dragged the rate down below $1.5400, triggering stops and bids.
GBP/USD tested 6-dais channel resistance line on $1.9590 and retreated to $1.9455.
USD/JPY rose to 5-months high on Y109.70, triggering offers around Y108.80/90 and stops on Y109.05/10.

Today’s focus is on rate decisions from BoE and ECB with banks are expected to leave rates unchanged at 5.00% and 4.25% respectively. But main attention will be on ECB’s head Trichet press-conference.
BoE rate decision is due to come at 11:00 GMT, while ECB’s decision is schedule to come at 11:45 GMT. At 10:00 GMT Germany industrial production figures will be released.