By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures and a broad swathe of commodities moved higher on Monday, as comments from a Federal Reserve member who will vote next year caused investors to exit the greenback to reinvest elsewhere. S&P 500 futures rose 11.6 points to 1,101.70 and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 17.25 points to 1,781.00. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 92 points. U.S. stocks by and large lost ground last week, with the Nasdaq Composite retreating 1% and the S&P 500 losing 0.2%, on concerns over the prospects for the U.S. consumer. But markets were in a more optimistic mood Monday in the run-up to the key post-Thanksgiving shopping period. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said Sunday that the U.S. should continue buying mortgage-backed securities past the first quarter of 2010, when asset purchases are due to end. See Bullard story. That contrasts with what European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet has been saying, as the euro-zone central bank on Friday announced its first step in making it tougher for commercial banks to get loans. "Central bank rhetoric on exit strategies remains pivotal for price action across major asset classes. This was clearly illustrated overnight as Asian markets digested comments by the Fed's Bullard, supportive of additional MBS purchases," said Kenneth Broux, economist at Lloyds TSB. The euro climbed 0.8% to $1.4974. A weak dollar has helped most other asset classes, as traders borrow against the low-yielding greenback to reinvest elsewhere in what's known as the carry trade. Gold futures surged, rising $19 an ounce to $1,165.80 an ounce. Other commodities also were stronger, with oil futures adding over $1 a barrel. See special report on gold. The moves come ahead of existing-home sales data for October, due at 10 a.m. Eastern, which may show a rise to 5.74 million from 5.57 million. There's also an auction of $44 billion worth of two-year notes. On the corporate front, Campbell Soup (CPB 34.12, +0.07, +0.21%) and Tyson Foods (TSN 13.07, 0.00, 0.00%) report results, with Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 50.04, +0.22, +0.44%) and Analog Devices (ADI 27.48, -0.36, -1.29%) quarterlies coming after the closing bell. Cadbury (CBY 52.80, -0.01, -0.02%) rose to a record high as a flurry of weekend press reports suggested a bidding battle between Hershey (HSY 37.18, +0.04, +0.11%) , Kraft Foods (KFT 27.17, +0.20, +0.74%) and Nestle (NSRG.Y 47.11, -0.14, -0.30%) . Ciena (CIEN 13.17, -0.30, -2.23%) won the auction for some of Nortel assets, outlasting Nokia Siemens Networks, for what reportedly was $769 million. Foreign markets were strong, with the Hang Seng up 1.4% in Hong Kong and the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 also up 1.4% in late morning action.

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