Asia

Rajan Says RBI Aims To Curb Inflation ‘Over Time,’ Not Abruptly. Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan said the central bank aims to bring down inflation “over time rather than abruptly” in its effort to curb price pressures and generate sustainable growth. “Rather than administer shock therapy to a weak economy, the RBI prefers to disinflate over time rather than abruptly” raise interest rates, Rajan said yesterday in Mumbai, according to an e-mailed text of his speech. “As of now, we believe the rate is appropriately set.” The RBI aims to bring consumer price inflation down to 8 percent by January 2015 and 6 percent by January 2016, Rajan said. (Bloomberg)

USA

Sales Of New U.S. Homes Rise To A Five-Year High. Purchases of new U.S. homes unexpectedly climbed in January to the highest level in more than five years, showing underlying strength in the industry even in the midst of unusually harsh weather. Sales increased 9.6 percent to a 468,000 annualized pace, exceeding the highest estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg and the most since July 2008, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Demand improved in three of four regions. (Bloomberg)

Europe

UK GDP Growth Confirmed At 0.7% As Business Investment Rises. Increased business investment helped to lift growth in the final three months of 2013, official figures have shown. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed that the economy grew by 0.7% in the quarter, unchanged from its previous estimate. However, its estimate for growth in 2013 as a whole was cut to 1.8% from the initial reading of 1.9%. The ONS said business investment in the  fourth quarter rose 2.4% from the previous three-month period. (BBC)

Currencies

Gauge Of Dollar Strength At Two-Week High. A popular gauge of the dollar’s strength hit a two-week high Wednesday, adding to gains in the wake of a report that showed the fastest pace of new-home sales in more than five years. The ICE dollar index, a gauge of the U.S. unit’s strength against six other currencies, rose to 80.461 from 80.158 late Tuesday. The dollar rose to ¥102.44 from ¥102.18 late Tuesday, while the Australian dollar declined to 89.58 from 90.16 U.S. cents. The euro fell to $1.3680 from $1.3740 late Tuesday. The British pound weakened to $1.6658 from Tuesday’s level of $1.6673. (Market Watch)

Commodities

U.S. Crude Rises On Small Stock Build, Large Draw At Hub. U.S. oil futures rose on Wednesday after government data showed a surprisingly small build in crude inventories and another large drawdown at the American benchmark's delivery point. U.S. crude oil settled 76 cents higher at $102.59 per barrel. It briefly touched a high of $102.90 after the EIA data was released. Brent crude settled up a penny at $109.52 a barrel. (Reuters)

Gold Falls On Dollar Rise, Strong U.S. Home Sales. Gold fell almost 1percent on Wednesday, retreating from a fourmonth high as a dollar rally and surging U.S. new home sales dented bullion's safe-haven appeal. Spot gold touched its highest level since Oct. 30 at$1,345.35 an ounce earlier in the day. Among other precious metals, silver fell 2.6 percent to $21.26 an ounce. Platinum dropped 0.8 percent to $1,422.10 an ounce and palladium was down 0.5 percent at $728.75 an ounce. (Reuters)