A roundup of trading on major world markets:

NEW YORK – US stocks fell sharply Wednesday after the Federal Reserve’s “Beige Book” portrayed a still-weak economy in September, as big losses from tech stars Apple and Amazon pulled the Nasdaq down more than 2.0 per cent.

Reports of ongoing discord over the coming comprehensive rescue plan for the eurozone also helped push shares lower, analysts said.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 72.43 points (0.63 per cent) to close at 11,504.62.

The broader S&P 500 shed 15.50 points (1.26 per cent) to 1,209.88, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite sank 53.39 points (2.01 per cent) to end at 2,604.04.

The Nasdaq was down from the beginning of the session, but the other indices mostly stayed positive until the last two hours.

Souring sentiment was the Beige Book September report, which compiles assessments of the economy from the central bank’s 12 regions.

While there was still growth in all the areas, “many districts described the pace of growth as ‘modest’ or ‘slight,'” the report said.

The report said business contacts “generally noted weaker or less certain outlooks for business conditions.”

The Nasdaq was dragged down by Apple, which fell 5.6 per cent after its quarterly report fell below expectations, and Amazon, which lost 5.1 per cent.

Bond prices fell slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.16 per cent from 2.15 per cent late Tuesday, while that on the 30-year Treasury climbed to 3.17 per cent from 3.16 per cent.

LONDON – Europe’s stock markets and the euro rallied, boosted by a newspaper report that EU leaders were close to massively increasing their bailout fund for troubled eurozone economies.

But a downgrade of Spain’s credit rating tempered the mood and reports the German government is slashing its 2012 growth forecast, in the run up to a EU summit set to centre on the debt crisis starting on Friday.

London’s FTSE 100 index of top shares closed up 0.74 per cent to 5,450.49, despite the Bank of England saying it expected no pick-up for Britain’s stalled economy in the current fourth quarter.

Frankfurt’s DAX 30 gained 0.61 per cent to 5,913.53 points despite reports that the government will on Thursday slash its 2012 growth forecast to 1.0 per cent from 1.8 per cent.

In Paris the CAC 40 won 0.52 per cent to 3,157.34 points.

Milan jumped 2.02 per cent and Madrid gained 0.43 per cent despite the two notch downgrade by Moody’s to A1 from Aa2, which further cited risks to the Spanish economy from the eurozone crisis.

In foreign exchange deals, the European single currency soared as high as $US1.3857, then slid back to 1.3775 in late London trade, but still up from $US1.3752 late in New York on Tuesday.

Markets took their lead from a report in a British newspaper that France and Germany had agreed to more than quadruple the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) bailout fund.

Citing unnamed European Union diplomats, The Guardian said the eurozone’s two biggest economies would boost the rescue fund to two trillion euros ($A2.69 trillion) from its current 440 billion euros.

If correct, the news would be a massive boost to markets as dealers have for months been concerned that Europe did not have sufficient funds if Spain or Italy run into trouble.

HONG KONG – Asian markets mostly rose, boosted by a Wall Street rally following a report that European leaders were close to massively increasing a rescue fund for troubled eurozone economies.

Robust earnings from chip giant Intel also provided some support but a downgrade of Spain’s credit rating tempered the mood.

Tokyo gained 0.35 per cent, or 30.63 points, to close at 8,772.54, while Sydney finished up 0.64 per cent, or 26.8 points, at 4,213.70.

Hong Kong ended 1.29 per cent, or 232.76 points, higher at 18,309.22 and Seoul was up 0.93 per cent, or 17.02 points, at 1,855.92.

However, Shanghai suffered another sell-off and closed down 0.25 per cent, or 5.98 points, at 2,377.51.

Markets took their lead from New York, where dealers welcomed a report in The Guardian report that France and Germany had agreed to more than quadruple the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) bailout fund.

WELLINGTON – Wellington closed 0.64 per cent, or 20.92 points, higher at 3,300.03.

Fletcher Building added 1.4 per cent to NZ$6.39 and Restaurant Brands shed 6.5 per cent to NZ$2.02.