Good morning traders!

In the US last night, the Dow rose 64 points to 15,301, the Nasdaq added 23 points at
3,815 and the S&P500 gained 7 points at 1,710.

In Asia today, the Nikkei was recently up 23 points at 14,428 and the Hang Seng
ahead 133 points at 23,352.

WTI crude oil traded at $102.41 a barrel and Brent crude at $111.04.

Gold settled at $1,276 an ounce.

Good hunting!

G.

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European Factors to Watch-Shares seen hitting 2-wk high on likely U.S. deal

Tue Oct 15, 2013 6:31am BST
LONDON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - European shares were expected to hit a two-week
high on Tuesday, mirroring gains on Wall Street and in Asia, on rising optimism
that U.S. lawmakers would soon agree on a deal to re-open their government and
avoid a possible debt default.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, and his Republican
counterpart, Mitch McConnell, ended a day of talks on Monday, with Reid saying
they had made "tremendous progress".

The plan under discussion would end a partial government shutdown and raise
the debt ceiling by enough to cover the nation's borrowing needs at least
through mid-February 2014, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.

Financial spreadbetters predicted Britain's FTSE 100 would open 31
to 33 points, or as much as 0.51 percent, higher, Germany's DAX would
gain 37 to 39 points, or as much as 0.45 percent, and France's CAC 40
would rise 19 to 20 points, or as much as 0.47 percent.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares ended 0.1 percent
higher in the previous session and a further rise on Tuesday would push the
index to its highest level since early October. U.S. stocks
closed 0.4 to 0.6 percent higher on Monday, while MSCI's broadest index
of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.8 percent on
Tuesday.

U.S. senators hint at possible fiscal deal on Tuesday

WASHINGTON | Tue Oct 15, 2013 1:46am BST
(Reuters) - A month of combat in the U.S. Congress over government spending showed signs on Monday of giving way to a Senate deal to reopen shuttered federal agencies and prevent an economically damaging default on federal debt.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, and his Republican counterpart, Mitch McConnell, ended a day of constant talks with optimistic proclamations, as details leaked out of the pact they were negotiating.

Morning All.

Nikkei rises for 5th day on hopes for imminent U.S. deal

Tue Oct 15, 2013 7:13am BST
By Ayai Tomisawa

TOKYO, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose
for a fifth straight session on Tuesday on hopes that U.S.
lawmakers will soon reach a deal to reopen the government and
avert a possible debt default, with a weaker yen lifting such
bellwether stocks as Sony Corp.

The Nikkei rose 0.3 percent to 14,441.54. The Topix
was virtually flat, edging up 0.03 percent to 1,197.47.

FTSE100 firmly higher in early deals as US optimism grows

GBP CPI y/y 2.7% 2.6% 2.7%

GBP PPI Input m/m -1.2% -0.1% -0.2%

GBP RPI y/y 3.2% 3.2% 3.3%

GBP Core CPI y/y 2.2% 2.0% 2.0%

GBP HPI y/y 3.8% 3.6% 3.3%

GBP PPI Output m/m -0.1% 0.3% 0.1%

German ZEW Economic Sentiment 52.8 49.2 49.6

Midday Market Overview

USD Empire State Manufacturing Index 1.5 8.2 6.3

Senators hopeful fiscal deal could pass on Wednesday

WASHINGTON | Tue Oct 15, 2013 3:26pm BST
(Reuters) - Senators expressed hope that a bipartisan deal could emerge on Tuesday to end Washington's fiscal crisis even as Republicans in the House of Representatives said they were working on a separate plan.

Even if Democrats and Republicans agree, it could be Wednesday before the U.S. Senate signs off on a plan, senators said, close to a Thursday deadline when the Obama administration says it will reach its borrowing limit and risk default.

White House calls House Republican fiscal proposal an attempt to appease Tea Party

WASHINGTON | Tue Oct 15, 2013 4:18pm BST
(Reuters) - The White House dismissed the latest fiscal proposal offered by Republicans who control the House of Representatives on Tuesday, calling it a partisan attempt to appease a small group of Tea Party conservatives.

With time running out toward a Thursday deadline to avert a historic U.S. debt default, House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Washington, proposed an alternative to a Senate plan that would affect Obama's signature healthcare law.

White House spokesman Amy Brundage said Obama has vowed repeatedly that lawmakers "don't get to demand ransom for fulfilling their basic responsibilities to pass a budget and pay the nation's bills."

End-of-day Market Overview