* Equities rise on U.S. retail data, higher oil price
* Oil at five-week high on US cold snap, recovery optimism
* Bond prices sag as equities gain in thin trading volume
* Dollar gains against the yen in holiday thin trade
(Updates with U.S. markets, changes byline, dateline,
previous SINGAPORE)
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, Dec 28 (Reuters) - Global stocks rose on Monday,
with U.S. equities lifted by increased retail sales during the
key holiday shopping season, and oil rose to a five-week high
over $79 a barrel on signs of economic recovery.
The dollar rose against the yen in year-end positioning,
but the U.S. currency was little changed against the euro as
investors debated the prospects for further gains after a
recent rally. []
U.S. Treasury prices fell, sending benchmark yields to
their highest level in nearly five months, as investors sold
holdings ahead of another big round of government debt issuance
this week. []
Euro zone government bond prices also fell as gains in
equity markets cut demand for lower risk government debt.
[]
Trading was thin in most markets in a holiday-shortened
week. Markets in Britain, Canada and Australia shut for the
Boxing Day holiday, while Monday was the last business day of
2009 for many Japanese companies.
There was little market impact from news over the weekend
of an attempt to blow up a passenger plane flying to Detroit.
[]
U.S. equities edged higher as retailers were lifted by data
that pointed to an improved performance during the holidays,
while rising commodity prices boosted resource companies.
[]
Sales at U.S. retailers rose 3.6 percent from Nov. 1
through Christmas Eve on Dec. 24, data from SpendingPulse, a
unit of MasterCard Advisors showed, though sales were up only 1
percent when adjusted for an extra shopping day this year. The
S&P Retail index <.RLX> added 0.5 percent.
Amazon.com Inc <AMZN.O> rose 2 percent to $141.26 after it
said customers bought more e-books than physical books for the
first time ever on Christmas Day as the Kindle e-reader became
Amazon's most-purchased gift ever. []
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was up 11.79
points, or 0.11 percent, at 10,531.89. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 0.31 points, or 0.03 percent, at
1,126.79. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was up 4.97
points, or 0.22 percent, at 2,290.66.
European shares rose for a fifth consecutive session after
advances in Asian equities and commodity prices, keeping them
on track to record a gain of 25 percent this year -- their best
annual performance since 1999.
"We certainly believe the rally can sustain if you look out
into 2010. We can be assured that we are looking at a V-shaped
rally in terms of corporate profitability," said Henk Potts,
equity strategist at Barclays Stockbrokers.
"Equities look attractive in a year which interest rates
remain low. Despite the rally this year, valuations still look
undemanding," he said.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <> index closed up
0.5 percent at 1,043.93 points.
Bund futures briefly hit a six-week low on the first day of
trading for the futures contract since Dec. 23, but strategists
warned thin liquidity distorted market moves.
"This is a period of very low liquidity so even if I do see
a weak tone in bonds today, the movement is not very
meaningful," said Luca Cazzulani, a strategist at UniCredit in
Milan.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note <US10YT=RR> was
down 9/32 in price to yield 3.84 percent.
The dollar was down against a basket of major currencies,
with the U.S. Dollar Index <.DXY> down 0.05 percent at 77.608.
The euro <EUR=> was down 0.03 percent at $1.4392. Against
the yen, the dollar <JPY=> was up 0.43 percent at 91.57.
"The dollar is digesting its recent strong advance," said
Andrew Bekoff, chief investment officer for Family Office Group
in New York.
The dollar has gained broadly in recent weeks on optimism
that the U.S. economy may be poised for better growth in 2010,
Bekoff said. Gains against the euro have been bolstered by
concerns that euro-based economies won't recover as quickly, he
said.
U.S. light sweet crude oil <CLc1> rose 77 cents, or 0.99
percent, to $78.82 per barrel.
Oil has climbed more than 12 percent from a dip below $70
two weeks ago on expectations of rising consumption and falling
inventories in the United States, where companies have been
drawing down stockpiles for end-year tax purposes.[]
"There were some strong draws in the stocks last week and
it is cold in the U.S.," said Olivier Jakob, analyst at
Petromatrix. "But the volumes are very light."
U.S. gold futures turned lower in quiet trade on weak
buying sentiment. []
Japan's Nikkei average <> rose 1 percent to a
four-month high on data showing factory output rising for the
ninth straight month in November. The MSCI index of Asia
Pacific stocks outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> rose 0.7 percent.
(Reporting by Leah Schnurr in New York; George Matlock,
Dominic Lau and Alex Lawler in London; writing by Herbert Lash;
Editing by Leslie Adler)
