Banks' shares rallied to their highest in 16 months, adding to recent momentum, amid bets an improving economy will stoke loan demand.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> edged up 2.95 points, or 0.03 percent, to end at 10,567.33. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 5.16 points, or 0.45 percent, to 1,145.61. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 18.27 points, or 0.78 percent, to 2,358.95.
NYMEX-NEW YORK, March 10 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures flipped higher in late trading on Wednesday, ending at an eight-week high, after a slip to just below $81 a barrel attracted fresh fund buying, analysts said.
Product futures showed the way back up, having trimmed gains earlier on a broad energy markets profit-taking binge.
The Energy Information Administration's data for the week to March 5 showed a 1.4 million barrel crude stock build, the sixth rise in a row.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, April crude
CBOT-CHICAGO, March 10 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade grains and soy complex close on Wednesday.
CBOT-SOYBEANS - May
CBOT-SOYOIL - May
FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 (Reuters) - Malaysia palm oil futures
Palm oil prices have gained support from a drawdown in Malaysian palm oil stock, which dropped 10.9 percent to a four month-low, beating market expectations of a just 5 percent decline.
The benchmark Malaysian palm oil futures
Overall production dropped 12.5 percent to 1.16 million tonnes also on fewer working days in February for harvesting and some labour shortages.
Thomas Mielke, executive director and publisher of Oil World, said he predicted that Malaysian palm oil prices may move above 3,000 ringgit on the same ground, if El Nino hits production in key producing countries Indonesia and Malaysia.
REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, March 10 (Reuters) - Singapore shares rose to their highest level in almost seven weeks on Wednesday after upbeat economic forecasts, and Thai stocks turned round after four days of losses thanks to selective buying of energy shares.
Optimism in the region grew as Chinese exports and imports in February were better than expected, with Malaysian stocks climbing to a two-year high while Indonesia and the Philippines both touched seven-week highs.
In Singapore, the main index ended up 0.8 percent at its highest since Jan. 21 after a central bank survey showed the city-state's economy was expected to grow 6.5 percent in 2010 after a contraction of 2.0 percent in 2009.
In Kuala Lumpur, the index <.KLSE> rose 0.78 percent to the highest since March 2008, led by plantation firms. Sime Darby