U.S. Stocks, Euro Gain as Italy’s Berlusconi Plans to Step Down
This article is for subscribers only.
U.S. stocks and the euro rose, erasing earlier losses, as Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s offer to resign bolstered optimism a new leader will be able to tame the nation’s debt crisis. Commodities rallied and Treasuries reversed gains.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed 1.2 percent to close at 1,275.92 at 4 p.m. in New York after slipping as much as 0.5 percent earlier. The euro appreciated 0.5 percent to $1.3839 as the shared currency climbed against 11 of 16 major peers. The S&P GSCI Index of commodities rose 0.8 percent as oil climbed to a more than three-month high. Ten-year Treasury yields gained four basis points to 2.08 percent after losing as much as four basis points.