Trader's Highlight

DJI - NEW YORK, July 10 - The Dow industrials and the S&P 500 fell on Friday, dropping for the fourth straight week, after Chevron Corp warned about its quarterly results and consumer confidence fell to it lowest level since March.

But the technology-heavy Nasdaq eked out a gain in light volume after Goldman Sachs upgraded the U.S. hardware and software sectors.

The news on Chevron and the U.S consumer highlighted concerns that an economic recovery and corporate profits in the second-quarter may be weak. Oil prices continued to skid as U.S. oil futures fell below $60 a barrel. The drop heightened concerns that demand remains sluggish and prompted investors to sell some shares of energy companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 36.65 points, or 0.45 percent, to 8,146.52. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 3.55 points, or 0.40 percent, to 879.13. But the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 3.48 points, or 0.20 percent, to 1,756.03.

NYMEX - NEW YORK, July 9 - U.S. crude oil futures ended lower on Friday on rising oil demand and economic worries, posting the biggest weekly percentage loss since January.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for August delivery settled 52 cents lower, or 0.86 percent, at $59.89 a barrel, after trading from $58.72 to $60.89. It was the lowest settlement since May 19's $59.65. The day's low was the lowest since prices hit an intraday low of $58.55, also on May 19.

CBOT - SOYBEANS - July up 17-3/4 cents at $11.28-1/4 a bushel; new-crop November up 1 at $9.17.

July rallied, bucking the lower trend, as shorts covered positions before expiration on Tuesday. Tight stocks supportive. Deferreds pressured by bearish reaction to USDA crop report, lower crude oil and equities. Nearly perfect crop weather in the U.S. also weighing on market.

CBOT - SOYOIL - July up 0.12 cent at 32.70 cents per lb. Soyoil underpinned by USDA cutting its 2009/10 U.S. ending stocks estimate.

FCPO - KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 - Malaysian palm oil futures restarted their fall on Friday and lost 7.5 percent this week as slowing growth in stocks and a recovery in exports failed to offset growing uncertainty over global economic recovery.

Sentiment was battered across financial markets as Japanese shares slumped to near 7-week lows and crude oil prices fell towards $60 with funds searching out safe havens that sent the yen near to the week's peaks. [

The benchmark September contract on Bursa Malaysia's Derivatives Exchange fell 1.8 percent, or 37 ringgit to settle at 2,010 ringgit ($562.2) per tonne. Volumes shot up to 14,497 lots at 25 tonnes each from the usual 10,000 lots.

REGIONAL EQUITIES - BANGKOK, July 10 - Southeast Asian stock markets were mixed on Friday as uncertainty about earnings and economic recovery prospects kept volume down and helped push bourses in Jakarta and Bangkok into the red.

Thailand led losses, dropping 2.7 percent after falling crude prices depressed heavyweight shares in the energy sector. Singapore eked out tiny gains, adding 0.02
percent as banks rose. Indonesia shed 1 percent.

Malaysia edged up 0.2 percent after a flat finish on Thursday while Vietnam sank 1.7 percent.

In Kuala Lumpur, shares in Chinese sports shoe maker Xingquan International gained 8.2 percent on its debut. The company is Malaysia's first foreign initial public offering