SHARES TEL AVIV The Tel Aviv-25 Index climbed for the first time in four days, adding 6.06, or 0.6 percent, to 1,083.35 in Tel Aviv, as 17 stocks rose, seven fell and one was unchanged. Investors traded about NIS 1.9 billion in shares and convertible securities. Cellcom Israel Ltd. increased 2.1%. The country's largest cellphone company was raised to "equal-weight" from "underweight" at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which cited the purchase of a stake in a telecommunication group by its sister company. Israel Chemicals Ltd. gained 2.8%. The company that extracts minerals from the Dead Sea to make fertilizers and chemicals said Fidelity International had boosted its holding to 5.2% as of May 7. Koor Industries Ltd. fell 3.2 %. The holding company said it had stopped negotiations to sell part of its stake in Makhteshim Agan Industries Ltd., the world's biggest maker of generic agrochemicals. WALL STREET Wall Street advanced moderately as a rising dollar cooled some concerns about inflation and helped keep oil prices in check. The Dow Jones industrials at times rose more than 100 points. The dollar's gains against other major currencies appeared to help ease some concerns about inflation. In midday trading, the Dow rose 101.85, or 0.80%, to 12,847.73. Broader stock indicators also rose. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index advanced 10.37, or 0.75%, to 1,398.65, and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 31.08, or 1.27%, to 2,476.60. EUROPE European stocks advanced for the first time in three days as takeover speculation lifted shares of UK retailers and an oil discovery in the North Sea boosted the profit outlook for energy companies. Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index gained 0.3% to 325.95. The regional gauge has still lost 11% this year on concern that the collapse of US subprime mortgages and a slowdown in consumer spending will curb profit growth. France's CAC 40 added 0.3%, while Germany's DAX climbed 0.5%. The UK's FTSE 100 increased 0.3% to 6,220.6. ASIA Asian markets edged tentatively higher as investors awaited a slew of key US economic data and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech this week for hints of what's in store for the US economy. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Index rose 88.02 points, or 0.6%, to 13,743.36. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index climbed 1% to 5,828.5 after briefly touching a three-month high. Financial markets in Hong Kong and South Korea were closed for public holidays. CURRENCIES The shekel snapped a three-day decline against the dollar, rising to 3.4490, from 3.4802 at the end of last week. The dollar traded at $1.5496 per euro, compared with $1.5482. Traders in the futures market have turned bullish on the dollar versus the euro for the first time since December 2005. The dollar has rallied 3.5% since touching the all-time low of $1.6019 per euro on April 22. The dollar gained momentum late last month after Fed policy makers said "substantial" rate cuts since September would help foster growth. The dollar got a further boost from a Labor Department report showing US employers eliminated fewer jobs in April than economists forecast. COMMODITIES Oil prices briefly spiked to a new record above $126 a barrel but later wobbled with some investors buying on worries of falling supply and others selling in response to a stronger dollar. Oil futures have set new records for six straight sessions, driven up by a weak US dollar and growing concerns about declining crude production in Mexico, Russia and elsewhere, analysts say. Goldman Sachs said in a report last week that crude prices could rise to $150 to $200 within two years. Light, sweet crude for June delivery jumped to a new record of $126.40 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange before falling back to $125.35, down 61 cents. The contract first rose above $126 on Friday.

Oil falls on stronger dollar

Israel Chemicals Ltd. gained 2.8%. said Fidelity International had boosted its holding to 5.2%,