The release of the FOMC minutes confirmed that US interest rates are unlikely to change anytime soon. The Fed committed to keeping interest rates near zero for at least another two years and in a divided decision the central bank also signalled it was prepared to do more if necessary to spur growth over the midterm. The market took the minutes as indication that the door was not closed on a third round of quantative easing.

European shares were mostly higher on Tuesday, after the near 20pct slide in the past three weeks saw bargain hunters buying cheaply valued stock. The STOXX Europe 600 Basic Resources index rallied 3pct. Miners, RIO Tinto gained 4.7pct while BHP rallied 3.5pct. Gains in the banking sector was more subdued as investors remained concerned of the ongoing European debt concerns. The FTSEurofirst index closed up 1.2pct while the German Dax eased by 0.1pct and the UK FTSE rose 1.9pct.

US sharemarkets rallied in late trade on Tuesday. After early weakness investors found comfort in the comments by the Federal Reserve. The market reversed direction six times after the Fed statement, before buying accelerated into the close with the S&P 500 posting its best day in more than two years. The Dow Jones rallied by almost 430pts or 4pct with the S&P 500 up by 4.7pct and the Nasdaq rose by 125pts or 5.3pct. The so-called ´´fear gauge´´ or Vix fell by 27pct to 35.

US treasury prices rose sharply on Tuesday (yields lower) after the Fed committed to keeping interest rates near zero for two years. Speculation mounted that the Fed would return to the bond market to stimulate the economy. US 2yr yields fell by 6pts to 0.20pct and US 10yr yields fell by 4pts to 2.27pct.

The Euro and commodity currencies rallied against the greenback after the release of the FOMC minutes. The Euro rose from lows near US$1.4185 to US$1.4340, ending the US session at its highs. The Aussie dollar rose from lows near US100.75c to US103.75c, ending US trade near its highs. And the Japanese yen held between 77.50 yen per US dollar and JPY76.65, ending US trade near JPY76.95.

Benchmark crude oil continued to remain depressed as investors remained concerned that weaker global economic growth would mean reduced demand for oil. Nymex crude oil fell by US$2.01 or 2.5pct to US$79.30 a barrel and London Brent crude fell by US$1.17 to US$102.57 a barrel.

Base metal prices were mixed on the London Metal Exchange on Tuesday but mostly recovered off their lows Copper closed 0.6pct lower while Tin was the best performer up 1.1pct. And the gold price soared once again to fresh record highs. Comex December gold rose by US$29.80 an ounce to US$1,743.00.

Ahead: In Australia, the consumer sentiment and lending finance figures are released. In the US, data on wholesale inventories is released.