and news that all traders and investors should be aware of.

Facebook soars pulling up markets Toyota is expected to report record earnings

And the U.S GDP gives markets a boost

Let's take a quick look at what is happening in the global markets now.

The US government reported that the economy grew at a solid 3.2% pace in the fourth quarter,

driven by strong consumer spending and exports. That beat economists' expectations, and although

it's not indicative of gangbusters growth, the data seems to show the economy is moving

forward modestly. The Dow rose more than 100 points, while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ both

gained more than 1%. Facebook shares soared 14% to a new all-time

high following strong quarterly sales and earnings. The social media giant's results

showed the company has made huge strides in mobile advertising, an area that previously

worried investors. European stock markets rebounded yesterday

after data showed the United States economy grew at a solid pace in the fourth quarter,

offsetting worries that Chinese manufacturing data, released earlier, showed a slowdown

in the sector. The DAX 30 index rose 0.4 per cent to 93-73.48. France's CAC 40 index picked

up 0.6 per cent to 41-80.02 and the UK's FTSE 100 index eased 0.1 per cent to 65-38.45.

In Asia the Nikkei recovered a bit after the selloff this week after news that Toyota Motor

Corp. is expected to log a record operating profit for the current business year through

March aided by the yen's fall, which boosts export competitiveness, sources said. The

auto giant's full-year operating profit is likely to reach 2.40 trillion yen.

In the foreign exchange markets, a report from Spain showed the country's economic recovery

picked up pace in the fourth quarter, with gross domestic product rising 0.3 per cent.

For the full year, the Spanish economy contracted 1.2 per cent. In Germany, labour-market figures

showed unemployment fell by 28thousand in January, better than the 5thousand expected.

The U.S. dollar traded at a one-week high against a basket of major currencies early

on Friday, having been swept higher as investors took aim at the euro in a volatile end to

a choppy month gripped by concerns over emerging economies. The euro skidded to a one-week

low of $1.3543 on Thursday and also lost ground on the Japanese currency, touching an eight-week

low of 138.90. The Australian dollar, bounced back towards 88 U.S. cents as it pulled away

from a 3-1/2 year low of $0.8660 a week ago.

Moving to the commodities market gold looked set to snap a five-week rally by the close

on Friday, as strong US economic growth and weak Chinese demand defuel a rally that began

in late December. Gold eased 0.1 per cent to $12-41.59 after a 2-per cent overnight

drop. Oil prices gained Thursday as U.S. fourth-quarter

gross domestic product came in encouraging. Gross domestic product of the world's biggest

oil-consuming country increased at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in the fourth quarter

of 2013. Light, sweet crude moved up 87 cents to 98.23 dollars a barrel while Brent crude

gained 10 cents to close at 107.95. This is Amy Anderson from OptionRally signing

off. Follow me on Facebook and watch for our new financial terms of the day and our weekly

events news. See you next week