Daily Data Flow: China, Earnings Season Boost Stocks; Housing Rebound Raises Homebuilder Stocks; EU Votes against Gas/Oil Company Corruption

China, Earnings Season Boost Stocks (Bloomberg)
Positive anticipation of earnings season again raised stocks for the day, though today’s rise was also aided by data showing slowing inflation in China. “The commodity pop is basically tied to the view on China,” Ralph Shive, the South Bend, Indiana-based manager of the Wasatch-Large Cap Value Fund, said. “The market is acting strongly. It doesn’t seem to want to go down. You get dips, and they seem to pop right back.”

Homebuilder Stocks up on Housing Rebound (CNBC)
With the housing market rebounding, homebuilding companies are finding plenty of work, and their stock is consequently on the rise. “We are pretty much in the second year of what should be a multi-year recovery,” said Alex Barron, an analyst with the Texas-based Housing Research Center.

European Union to Pass Stringent Gas/Oil Anti-Corruption Measures (Reuters)
Today, EU dealmakers reached a consensus on a law which will require oil and gas companies, among others, to declare payments to governments in an effort to end resource-rich nations’ poverty by making sure the wealth is shared out. “Revenues from the sector are too often vulnerable to corruption and mismanagement,” Joseph Williams of campaign group Publish What You Pay said. “The oil, gas and mining sectors have the potential to bring great wealth to countries if they are managed well.”