Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks slid on Monday on more evidence the year-long recession will keep eating into corporate profits, while retailers tumbled on worry the holiday shopping season could be the worst in nearly 40 years.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 59.42 points, or 0.69 percent, to 8,519.69. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 16.25 points, or 1.83 percent, at 871.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gave up 31.97 points, or 2.04
percent, at 1,532.35.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures fell nearly 6 percent on Monday, slumping on demand concerns as the February contract took over as front-month following January's Friday expiration at the lowest settlement in over four years. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, February crude fell $2.45, or 5.78 percent, to settle at $39.91 a barrel, trading from $39.74 a contract low, to $43.44.

January crude expired on Friday at $33.87 a barrel, the lowest settlement for front-month crude since Feb. 10, 2004, when it ended at the same level. It fell to $32.40 intraday -- lowest since $32.25 struck Feb. 9, 2004.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - January up 18-1/4 cents at $8.86-1/2 a bushel. Rallied as traders unwound corn/soy spreads put on earlier. Strong U.S. cash markets as farmer sales not keeping up with export program out of the U.S. Gulf added support along with dryness in parts of South America.

U.S. Census Bureau to issue its monthly crush data on Tuesday. Analysts were expecting November soybean crushings between 145.5 and 146.5 million bushels.

CBOT-SOYOIL - January up 0.34 cent at 30.94 cents per lb. Following soybeans higher.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures rose 3.4 percent on Monday as crude oil earlier clawed back some of its losses, lifting vegetable oil markets from China to the United States.

The benchmark March 2009 settled up 52 ringgit at 1,588 ringgit ($456.3) per tonne. Other traded months rose between 22 and 61 ringgit in overall traded volume of 8,003 lots of 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stocks fell on Monday despite a bailout for U.S. auto makers, although trading was generally quiet due to the looming year-end holidays.

In a week shortened by the Christmas holiday and amid lacklustre trade, Singapore <.FTSTI> ended down 2.78 percent, Thailand <.SETI> shed 2.89 percent, and Malaysia <.KLSE> eased 0.34 percent.

The Philippines <.PSI> touched a 4-week low before closing down 3.3 percent, Indonesia <.JKSE> dropped 0.22 percent, but Vietnam <.VNI>, Southeast Asia's worst performing market, ended 0.9 percent higher.