Asian markets ended higher as oil prices retreated from recent high levels. Tokyo's Nikkei-225 Index was up by 0.22% to 10,985.33, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Stock Index gained 1.73% to 12,646.49. Korea's Kospi Index added 0.60% to 792.34, while Australia's All Ordinaries Index finished up 0.13% to 3539.70.

Tokyo closed higher Wednesday, reaching to a new four-year high for the third-straight session due to growing confidence in the country's economic recovery. The Nikkei 225 index added 0.24% percent, to 12,502.26 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The broader TOPIX gained 0.28% to 1,275.61.

European shares closed lower dragged down by weaker mining and metals stocks following results from BHP Billiton. At the close, the German DAX 30 shed 0.04% to 4915.95, while the French CAC-40 lost 0.3% at 4424.43. The U.K.'s FTSE-100 Index dropped 0.4% to 5279.6.

ENERGY, METALS AND CURRENCIES MARKETS

Crude-oil prices added 63 cents to $66.34 a barrel in New York Mercantile Exchange electronic trading Wednesday, ahead of a key U.S. oil-inventories report that is expected to record a decline in crude and gasoline stocks.

The dollar traded at 110.13 yen, up vs. 109.84 yen late Tuesday, while the euro advanced to $1.2272 vs. $1.2233.

The 10-year Treasury climbed 6/32, or $1.86 per $1,000 invested, to yield 4.163%. The 30-year bond rose 10/32 to yield 4.373%.

December gold declined $3.60 at $440.70 an ounce after reaching a two-week low of $440.50. Gold prices advanced $2 in the last two days and haven't witnessed such low levels since Aug. 10.

September silver lost 1%, at $6.90 an ounce after reaching its 7-weeks low.

EARNINGS NEWS

John. B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc. (JBSS: chart), nut marketer and distributor, posted 4Q net income of 32 cents a share, unchanged from the same quarter a year ago. Net income for the 12 months ended June 30 declined to $14.5 million vs. $22.6 million. 4Q sales advanced to $144.1 million, and 2005 sales climbed to $581.7 million.

Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. (CNSL: chart) swung to a 2Q net income of $2.7 million vs. a loss of $4.1 million last year. Revenue for the period increased to $78.3 million vs. $72.5 million a year earlier.

Longview Fibre Co. (LFB: chart), paper and container manufacturer, said 3Q profit slid to 11 cents a share vs. 15 cents a share last year, disappointing estimates of 16 cents. Sales rose 2% to $224.9 million.

Regis, hair care producer, reported 4Q net income of 64 cents per share, up vs. 58 cents per share for the same time last year on 17% consolidated revenue growth and a 0.9 % rise in same-store sales.

Telekom Austria, telecommunications provider, reported 2Q earnings of 39 eurocents, compared with 21 eurocents in the comparable period last year on revenue growth in the wireless business segment, mainly due to foreign operations, higher subscribers and strong data business.

BHP Billiton, Anglo-Australian resources group, reported record full-year net profit of US$6.398 billion, up 89.3 %t from US$3.379 billion a year ago on strong demand from China and high prices for its raw materials.

Genesco, specialty retailer, announced 2Q earnings increased to 27 cents a share vs. 20 cents a share for the year-ago period on strong sales, beating market expectations of 22 cents per share

Bombardier, aerospace company, posted 2Q earnings of 6 cents a share, up from a the same period last year’s profit of 5 cents per share despite revenue decline. Excluding items, the company earned 2 cents a share in July.
American Woodmark profit down but tops target

American Woodmark, kitchen cabinet maker and distributor, announced that 1Q profit went down to 45 cents a share, from 58 cents a year earlier, beating analysts forecasts of earnings within the range of 30 to 40 cents a share.

PetroChina announced its first-half net profit increased 36% and revenue went up 42% to 252.5 billion yuan from 178.4 billion yuan in the first half of last year. The said the earnings rise was due to ‘continued high crude-oil prices"". PetroChina has recently reached an agreement to buy a major oil producer in Kazakhstan.