Equities Asian markets closed mostly higher, following Wall Street’s advance on Monday. The Nikkei rose .3%, and the Shanghai Composite gained .6%. Australia’s ASX 200 dropped .7%, bucking the trend. Markets in Hong Kong and South Korea were closed. China released trade data which showed a huge rise in the trade surplus, rising to $11.4 billion in April. European markets rallied strongly as investors dismissed concerns over Greece’s debt. An auction in Greek debt was deemed a success, reassuring investors. The FTSE gained 1.3% and the DAX rose 1.2%. Greek banks led the advance, rising 5.4%. US extended their gains, with the Dow rising 76 points to 12760, and the Nasdaq up 1%. Microsoft announced it would buy Skype for $8.5 billion. Microsoft shares dropped .6%, while Ebay, which has a 30% stake in Skype, gained 2.5%. Dean Foods rocketed 11.5% higher after beating earnings expectations. Treasuries and Commodities Bonds fell, as import price data showed price rising faster than expected, fueling inflation concerns. 10-year notes fell 12/32 to yield 3.2%, and 30-year notes dropped 18/32 to yield 4.34%. Commodities continued their advance, as investors took advantage of last week’s steep declines. Crude rose 1% to 103.55 and gasoline futures gained 2.6%. Metals advanced, led by silver which jumped 3.9% to 38.55 while gold added 13.50 to 1516.70. Copper rose .9% to 4.052. Agricultural futures closed mostly higher, as sugar surged 4.3% and wheat rose 1%. Currencies The US dollar ended mixed against major currencies. Among the gainers, the Euro rose .3% to 1.4405, recovering from early losses, and the Australian dollar climbed .5% to 1.0838. The Swiss Franc skidded .9% to .8804, while the Yen dropped .7%, as the appeal of safe haven currencies diminished. Economic Outlook Wholesale inventories rose 1.1% in March, slightly more than expected, but the NFIB small business index showed a rise in optimism. Import Prices rose by 2.2% in April, more than expected, but lower than March’s jump of 2.6%. Wednesday’s reports will include the International Trade Balance, weekly mortgage applications and weekly oil inventories. Earnings are due from Toyota, Cisco and Symantec.

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