NEW YORK - WALL Street opened higher on Wednesday after upbeat comments from key retailer Home Depot and strong demand for commodities bolstered confidence that the economy is poised to rebound from its slump.

In early action, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 71.26 points (0.81 per cent) to 8,834.32 after a mixed session a day earlier.

WASHINGTON - CITIGROUP finalised plans on Wednesday to convert the US Treasury capital injection into common stock, a move that gives the government a major stake in the ailing banking group.

Citi said the conversion would affect a total of US$58 billion (S$84 billion) in preferred shares, including US$25 billion from the US government and other investments from the government of Singapore and others.

FRANKFURT - INFLATION in Germany, Europe's biggest economy, fell to its lowest in 22 years in May as manufacturers' revenues dropped and business failures increased, the Federal Statistical Office said on Wednesday.

The Wiesbaden-based office said the consumer price inflation rate fell to zero in May on an annual basis, down from 0.7 percent in April. That was mainly due to higher energy and food prices in May 2008, but also suggests consumers are buying less, causing retailers to slash prices.