US markets staged a last gasp rally overnight, overcoming all of their earlier falls. The Dow added two points, settling at 13346, whilst the Nasdaq rose 0.4% and the S&P500 climbed 0.1%.

Apple led the fight back, with the iPhone maker's shares surging four percent ahead of the likely release of its iPad mini. The Dow overcame a 100 point as Caterpillar managed a solid gain despite cutting its full year profit outlook due to anemic global growth.

Among the commodities, gold rebounded from a three session slump, advancing 0.4% to US$1732 an ounce. Oil tumbled 1.5% to US$88.73 as a key pipeline in North America is due to restart after a recent closure.

The euro moved higher against the greenback after a local election in Spain allowed the Prime Minister's party to hang onto power, easing tensions in the troubled eurozone nation.

Elsewhere, the yen was hit by yesterday's disastrous export data out of Japan and speculation the central bank could further expand its monetary easing program. In local economic news, the CB Leading Index is due for release at 10:00am, AEDT.

Morning Market Analysis: US Rallies is a post from: Australian Stock Report Market Pulse Blog