New Zealand/Australia Morning Call-Global markets

-----------------------(07:17 / 1817
GMT)-----------------------
Stock Markets
S&P/ASX 200 5,608.10 +70.50 NZSX 50 3,574.80
+1.90
DJIA 12,432.26 +192.25 Nikkei 13,021.96
+4.72
NASDAQ 2,337.73 +17.67 FTSE 5,910.00
+202.30
S&P 500 1,355.62 +16.49 Hang Seng 22,616.11
+305.56
SPI 200 Fut 5,683.00 +94.00 CRB Index 375.86
-2.13
Bonds
AU 10 YR Bond 93.730 -0.020 US 10 YR Bond 3.688
+0.070
NZ 10 YR Bond 6.930 -0.010 US 30 YR Bond 4.476
+0.074
Currencies (Prev at 7pm NZST)
AUD US$ 0.9046 0.9043 NZD US$ 0.7915
0.7903
EUR US$ 1.4587 1.4547 Yen US$ 107.42
106.93
Commodities
Gold (Lon) 917.00 Silver (Lon) 17.460

Gold (NY) 923.70 Light Crude 92.97
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Overnight market action. An updated report will be sent after
the close of New York markets.

EQUITIES

NEW YORK - U.S. stocks rallied on Tuesday after billionaire
Warren Buffett's offer to the three top bond insurers to take
on $800 billion in municipal bond risk triggered an unwinding
of bets that the market was set to fall.

Positive earnings news from agricultural company Monsanto
and drug maker Schering-Plough added to the buying and helped
extend Monday's rebound from last week's steep losses.

Buffett's move allayed fears that credit downgrades of the
insurers would force investors to sell billions of dollars in
bonds issued by cities and states. That sent the S&P financials
index up 2.2 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 208.10
points, or 1.70 percent, at 12,448.11. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index .SPX was up 19.51 points, or 1.46 percent, at
1,358.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was up 24.36
points, or 1.05 percent, at 2,344.42.

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LONDON - The FTSE 100 .FTSE index of Britain's leading
shares extended gains to add 3.5 percent on Tuesday as a Warren
Buffett's rescue offer for troubled bond insurers led stocks
higher.

The blue-chip index ended up 202.3 points at 5,910.0 and is
2.2 percent higher this week.

A bullish open on Wall Street buoyed UK stocks, as positive
earnings news and billionaire Buffett's offer to reinsure $800
billion worth of debt insured by top bond insurers lifted
financial companies.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index was up 3.4 percent.

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TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei average ended flat in seesaw trade
on Tuesday, with sharp gains in high-tech firm TDK Corp
(6762.T: Quote, Profile, Research) and oil exploration company Inpex Holdings Inc
(1605.T: Quote, Profile, Research) offset by steep falls in insurance shares.

Lawson Inc (2651.T: Quote, Profile, Research), a major convenience store operator,
rose in late trade and ended up 2 percent at 4,050 yen after
Japan Post [JP.UL] said it was considering taking a stake in
it.

The benchmark Nikkei .N225 ended up 0.04 percent at
13,021.96. The broader TOPIX index was down 0.1 percent
at 1,286.10.

TDK rose 5.6 percent to 7,230 yen, becoming the biggest
booster of the Nikkei by volume. Another strong performer was
Tokyo Electron (8035.T: Quote, Profile, Research), which climbed 3.4 percent to 6,310
yen.

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FOREIGN EXCHANGE

NEW YORK - The dollar fell against the euro on Tuesday but
gained on the yen after Warren Buffett said he had offered to
assume troubled bond insurers' liabilities, a move that may
ease recent credit market turmoil.

U.S. equities rallied after Buffett told CNBC television
that the Berkshire Hathaway plan would cover $800 billion in
municipal bonds. That helped lift the dollar against the
low-yielding yen, which tends to rise with risk aversion but
suffers when investor outlook brightens.

But a renewed risk appetite also boosted the euro against
the yen and pushed the European currency to a session peak of
$1.4614 <EUR=> before easing to $1.4598, up about 0.5 percent
from late Monday.

The dollar hit a session peak of 107.53 yen <JPY=> before
easing to 107.44 yen, up half a percent on the day. The euro
rose 1 percent to 157.05 yen <EURJPY=>.

Sterling climbed 0.6 percent to $1.9623 <GBP=>, shaking off
earlier losses suffered after a tame British inflation report
boosted expectations of more Bank of England rate cuts ahead.

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TREASURIES

NEW YORK - Treasury bond prices slid on Tuesday after
billionaire investor Warren Buffett offered to take over some
liabilities of bond insurers, easing a critical concern that
has inspired flight-to-safety U.S.bond purchases.

A rebound in U.S. stocks dealt another blow to the safe
haven allure of U.S. government issues, adding to their losses.

Buffett told CNBC television that Berkshire Hathaway's plan
would cover $800 billion in municipal bonds. The remarks curbed
the risk aversion bid that has stoked a U.S. government bond
market rally for much of the past seven months.

The benchmark 10-year note's price, which moves inversely
to its yield, fell 25/32 for a yield of 3.71 percent
<US10YT=RR>, compared with 3.62 percent late Monday.

Further eroding Treasuries appeal, U.S. stocks surged, with
the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rising 1.8 percent to
12,462 points. U.S. Treasuries are often seen as a
comparatively stable refuge to park funds when stocks tumble,
while climbing equities tend to draw flows out of Treasuries.

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COMMODITIES

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GOLD

NEW YORK - The news of lower bullion demand from top
consumer India due to near-record prices took a toll on
sentiment of U.S. gold futures on Tuesday, but higher
flight-to-quality and investment buying remained supportive to
the futures market.

Platinum contracts resumed their rally toward the historic
$2,000 mark, reaching a record high for the ninth consecutive
session, and continued to be driven by fears of a huge market
deficit.

At 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT), the gold contract for April
delivery at the COMEX division of the NYMEX GCJ8 was down
$5.80 to $920.90 an ounce amid light volume, trading between
$915.50 and $928.50.

Spot gold <XAU=> was quoted at $917.50/918.40, versus
Monday's New York close of $922.70/923.40. London bullion
dealers fixed the afternoon spot price at $917.00.

COMEX March silver SIH8 was up 1.5 cents to $17.485 an
ounce, trading between $17.335 and $17.650.

Spot silver <XAG=> was at $17.45/17.50, compared with its
last Monday quote of $17.47/17.52. London silver was fixed at
$17.46.

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BASE METALS

LONDON - Copper prices climbed higher on Tuesday, gaining
for a fifth straight day on falling inventories, ahead of the
return of Chinese traders after a week-long break on Wednesday.

Copper for delivery in three months on the London Metal
Exchange MCU3, often seen as a reliable gauge of real
economic activity, rose to $7,890 per tonne, up $125 from
Monday.

Aluminium MAL3 fell $35 to 2,655 per tonne and zinc
MZN3 gained $40 to $2,485 per tonne, but gains may be on the
cards, according to a technical analyst.

Lead MPB3 was $20 higher at $3,050 per tonne, nickel
MNI3 was down $50 at $28,100 and tin MSN3 was up $5 at
$17,100/17,110 per tonne.

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OIL

NEW YORK - U.S. crude oil was down after midday Tuesday,
having seesawed ahead of Wednesday's oil inventory data
expected to show U.S. supplies rose last week.

Crude futures fell early after rising nearly 2 percent on
Monday, reacting to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's threat
to halt exports to the United States after Exxon Mobil (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research)
won a court order freezing $12 billion of Venezuela's overseas
assets.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:40 p.m. EST (1740
GMT), March crude CLH8 was down 72 cents, or 0.77 percent, at
$92.87 a barrel, seesawing in a range from $92.06 to $94.15.

In London, March Brent crude LCOH8 was down 61 cents, or
0.65 percent, at $92.92 a barrel. The March Brent contract
expires on Thursday.

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