Berlusconi resignation pledge boosts global markets

Berlusconi pledged to step down after the Italian parliament passes the austerity package required by the European Union. Yesterday, he failed to secure backing from a majority of voters in the Chamber of Deputies leading to calls for his resignation. Markets responded positively to the news with the Dow Jones industrial average up 102 points to 12,170, the S&P 500 rising 15 to 1,276 and the NASDAQ Composite advancing 32 to 2,727. In Asia, the MSCI Asia Pacific index rallied 1.3% at 4 pm in Tokyo while the Hang Seng jumped 2.6%. Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 1.2%. Figures ...