| * PBoC acts to ease China cash crunch fears * Global shares rally after taper move * Putin defends Russia's bailout of Ukraine * AstraZeneca in $4bn diabetes deal * Saab shares soar on Brazil defence deal * Baucus tipped as US envoy to China * Emerging markets take taper in their stride * Rice boils over as Thai election issue * S&P 500 hits record after Fed taper move * West had been ready to loan Kiev €20bn * US stocks set record as Fed steps back * EM downgrades outnumber promotions * State likely behind China's gold imports * Markets: mixed PBoC acts to ease China cash crunch fears
Spike in lending rates forces China's central bank to announce 'short-term liquidity operation' to provide credit to banks in need of money
http://on.ft.com/19UFV0x Global shares rally after taper move
Equities advance, taking Federal Reserve's decision to start paring back its economic stimulus measures as a signal US economy is returning to health
http://on.ft.com/19UFV0u Putin defends Russia's bailout of Ukraine
Speaking at his annual news conference in Moscow, president says Russia's offer to temporarily cut gas prices to Kiev by a third could be extended
http://on.ft.com/19UFTWv AstraZeneca in $4bn diabetes deal
Anglo-Swedish group to acquire the Bristol-Myers Squibb stake in the alliance as it takes a $1.7bn impairment charge
http://on.ft.com/19UFTWz Saab shares soar on Brazil defence deal
Brazil has awarded a coveted $4.5bn fighter jet contract to Sweden's Saab, delivering a bitter blow to Boeing of the US and Dassault of France
http://on.ft.com/18Yro6Z Baucus tipped as US envoy to China
Appointment of senator, who would replace Gary Locke as ambassador in Beijing, comes at a time when tensions between US and China appear to be rising
http://on.ft.com/18YrprB Emerging markets take taper in their stride
The relative calm in emerging markets suggests the US central bank prepared the ground well for the start of the end of easy money
http://on.ft.com/18YrprD Rice boils over as Thai election issue
Farmers are complaining that the rice subsidies offered by the Yingluck government are drying up adding to the pressure on Thailand's prime minister ahead of national elections called for February 2
http://on.ft.com/18YrpHS S&P 500 hits record after Fed taper move
Dollar pushes above Y104 and Treasury yields inch higher after Federal Reserve opts to start paring back its economic stimulus measures
http://on.ft.com/JFTn2d West had been ready to loan Kiev €20bn
Total would have broadly matched the bailout package Russia pledged to Ukraine on Tuesday – and what Ukraine had publicly demanded
http://on.ft.com/18YrpHT US stocks set record as Fed steps back
The US central bank reinforces forward guidance of low interest rates with a statement that interest rates are likely to stay close to zero
http://on.ft.com/18YrpHU EM downgrades outnumber promotions
The last time downgrades outnumbered upgrades was in 2008/09, when the financial crisis spurred agencies to slash the ratings of a slew of countries
http://on.ft.com/18Yro74 State likely behind China's gold imports
There has been no update on reserves since 2009, and some analysts suspect China's central bank has purchased up to 300 tonnes of gold this year
http://on.ft.com/18YrpI0 Emerging Markets
MSCI Emerging Market Index down -0.30% at 989.74 Europe
FTSE up +1.03% at 6,559
RTS up +0.64% at 1,433
Warsaw Wig up +0.57% at 51,260
FTSE 300 Eurotop up +1.51% at 1,278 Americas
DJIA up +1.84% at 16,168
S&P 500 up +1.66% at 1,811
Bovespa up +0.94% at 50,563 Asia
Nikkei 225 up +1.74% at 15,859
Topix up +1.01% at 1,263
Hang Seng down -1.10% at 22,889
Shanghai Composite down -0.95% at 2,128
MSCI Asia ex-Japan down -0.63% at 458.35
CNX Nifty down -0.81% at 6,167 Currencies
€/$ 1.37 (1.37)
$/¥ 104.07 (104.26) Commodities
Brent Crude (ICE) down -0.13 at 109.50
Light Crude (Nymex) down -0.06 at 97.74
100 Oz Gold (Comex) down -31.70 at 1,204 | 
