The euro steadied around $1.3110, after reaching a one-month
high of $1.3140 on Wednesday.
Investors will be cautious ahead of a meeting of European
leaders in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, watching for
possible discussions over bailouts for struggling Spain and
Greece.
European leaders will try to bridge deep differences over
plans for a banking union at the summit, but no substantial
decisions are expected, reviving concerns about complacency
in tackling the three-year-old debt crisis.
Clear decisions on helping Cyprus, Greece and Spain may also
only come at a finance ministers' meeting next month,
officials say.
Asian credit markets firmed marginally, with the spread on
the iTraxx Asia ex-Japan investment-grade index tighter by 1
basis point.
US crude futures were down 0.2 per cent at $91.96 a barrel.
The S&P 500 rose for the third consecutive day on Wednesday
after housing starts hit a four-year high, but the Dow was
weighed down by IBM after it posted weak revenue.
Homebuilders' shares led gains after the Commerce Department
said groundbreaking on new homes jumped 15 percent in
September, the quickest pace since July 2008. The surge in
housing starts was viewed as evidence that the housing
sector's fledgling recovery is bolstering the recovery of the
broader economy.
