The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed past 20,000 for the first time as stocks around the world extended a rally after corporate earnings reignited investors' optimism in economic growth. Bonds sold off with oil.
The index for American blue chips took the round-number milestone after a handful of rallies fell short in the past month. It was the second-fastest 1000-point trip in its history. European equities jumped the most since November 9, swept up in trades favouring banks and cyclical companies.
The yield on 10-year Treasury notes topped 2.50 per cent. The Mexican peso slumped after Donald Trump said he plans to unveil actions that include steps toward building a border wall. Oil fell on increased US stockpiles. Spot iron ore dipped 20 US cents to $US82.49 a tonne.
ASX futures rose 31 points or 0.6 per cent to 5642. Australian markets are closed Thursday for the Australia Day holiday. On Wednesday, the benchmark S&P;/ASX 200 index ended 0.4 per cent higher at 5671, propped up by a 2 per cent surge in the materials sub-index.
The Australian dollar slipped 0.4 per cent to US75.52¢, down from an overnight peak of 75.99.
"With a swift move towards signing executive orders, coupled with underlying positive economic data, clarity has begun to hit the headlines, and all the US indexes are celebrating," Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial said. "Clarity is the markets' oxygen."
The stock surge comes as Trump moves to fulfil pro-growth campaign promises, including identifying possible infrastructure projects, approval of two oil pipelines and cajoling of American car makers to build plants in the US. Corporate earnings added to the bullish sentiment, with Boeing the latest company to post results that topped expectations.
Other global-growth signals such as rising bond yields are feeding higher bank lending margins, and re-invigorated spending is boosting consumer cyclicals.
Here are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The Dow rose 137.82 points to 20,050.53 at 10.24am in New York. Boeing led gains in the index, rising 3.5 per cent after profits rose last quarter.
The S&P; 500 Index jumped 0.6 per cent to a record 2292.98. Industrial, technology and financial shares led gains.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index jumped 1.3 per cent, while Germany's DAX rose to the highest level since May.
Personal computer maker Logitech International led Europe's stock gains after beating quarterly profit estimates, surging 16 per cent. Banco Santander rose 3.4 per cent on better-than-expected quarterly profits.
Bonds
The yield on the 10-year Treasury added four basis points to at 2.5 per cent, the highest in a month.
The yield on the benchmark Bund due in a decade rose five basis points to 0.46 per cent, the highest level in a year.
Australia's 10-year yield is at 2.73 per cent.
Currencies
The US dollar weakened against all its Group of 10 peers, except the Aussie, as the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged lower.
The Mexican peso dropped to a session low after a New York Times report said Trump will sign an executive order for a border wall to be built.
Turkey's lira weakened 0.8 per cent to 3.8155 per US dollar on speculation further central bank tightening may be needed to stem its declines.
Commodities
The Bloomberg commodity index, which measures returns on raw materials, was down 0.5 per cent, heading for the biggest drop in a week.
West Texas Intermediate crude lost 0.9 per cent to drop below $US53 a barrel.
Most industrial metals declined on the London Metal Exchange, cutting gains after the LMEX Index closed at the highest level since May 2015 on Tuesday.
Iron-ore futures increased 1 per cent to near the highest level in more than two years. Speculation of sustained Chinese demand for imports is outweighing repeated warnings from analysts that the rally is overextended and will unravel. Spot iron ore dipped 20 US cents to $US82.49 a tonne.