Factory output burst lifts US stocks

Stocks on Wall Street rose as strong manufacturing data from the East Coast outweighed higher-than-expected jobless claims and a rise in consumer prices.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's index of general business activity hit its highest level since January 2004, outstripping expectations as it jumped to 35.9 in February from 19.3 the month before.

But the US labour market remained sluggish, blunting investors' optimism. Initial jobless claims increased 25,000 to 410,000 last week, above economists’ expectations.

The seasonally adjusted consumer-price index last month increased 0.4% from December, and underlying inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, rose 0.2%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 29.97 points, or 0.2%, to 12,318.14 at the close (10am NZ time).

The S&P 500 index rose 0.3% to 1340.43 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.2% to 2831.58. Energy and materials stocks led the S&P 500, while Coca-Cola and Dupont led the Dow's gainers.

Other markets: Europe up, Asia mixed
Stocks in Europe eked out gains after erasing earlier losses. The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.2% to 291.16, its highest closing level since at least August 2008 and its fifth straight session.

France's CAC 40 index closed up 0.03% at 4152.31 and the UK's FTSE 100 index edged up 0.03% to 6087.38. Germany's DAX 30 index dropped 0.1% to 7405.51,

In Asia, Chinese and Hong Kong stocks ended higher after a rollercoaster ride. Each changed direction a few times as property developers kept the markets pressured,

The Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished 0.6% up at 23,301.84 while the Shanghai Composite rose 0.1% to 2926.96.

Japanese shares rose for the fourth day in a row as exporters extended gains amid positive cues from Wall Street. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.3% to 10,836.64,

Qantas Airways advanced in Sydney on an upbeat earnings report, lifting the S&P/ASX 200 0.2% to 4938.44.

India's Sensex rose 1.1% to 18,506.82 while Korea's Kospi shed 0.6% to 1977.22, Taiwan's Taiex lost 0.3% to 8683.88 and Singapore's Straits Times index gave up 0.4% to 3082.83.

Commodities: Oil, gold up
Crude-oil futures rose as traders evaluated whether new turmoil in the Middle East could disrupt supplies.

Light, sweet crude for March delivery rose $US1.43 to $86,42 a barrel in New York. The April Brent crude contract on the ICE futures exchange was down 94USc to $102.84 a barrel.

Gold futures ended at a fresh five-week high in New York. The most actively traded contract, for April delivery, settled up 0.7%, or $US10, at $US1385.10 an ounce.