Trader's Highlight

DJI - NEW YORK, June 12 - The Dow moved into positive territory for the year for the first time since early January on Friday, lifted by defensive sectors like pharmaceuticals while a disappointing outlook from National Semiconductor weighed on technology stocks.

The healthcare sector rose as investors rotated money into defensive plays, which pushed the S&P 500 to a seven-month high. The AMEX Pharmaceutical index gained 1.2
percent.

Defensive plays are stocks of companies that tend to weather a recession better than others because their products -- such as food or toothpaste or drugs -- are things that people buy, even if they cut spending, in leaner times.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 28.34 points, or 0.32 percent, to 8,799.26. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 1.32 points, or 0.14 percent, to
946.21. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 3.57 points, or 0.19 percent, to 1,858.80.

NYMEX - NEW YORK, June 12 - U.S. crude oil futures ended lower on Friday as the dollar's rebound directed investment flow away from commodities, at least for the moment, and as traders took pre-weekend profits, snapping a three-day rally.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, July crude settled down 64 cents, or 0.88 percent, at $72.04 a barrel, trading from $70.80 to $72.63. It settled on Thursday at $72.68, the highest close since Oct. 20's $74.25, after hitting an intraday high of $73.23, highest since Oct. 21's $75.69.

CBOT - SOYBEANS - July down 21-1/2 cents per bushel at $12.45-1/2. Profit-taking ahead of the weekend weighing on soybean futures in addition to pressure from firm dollar and lower crude oil. Forecasts for better crop planting and growing weather next week in the United States also weigh.

CBOT - SOYOIL - July down 1.04 cents per lb at 37.16. Lower crude oil and profit-taking combine to weigh on soyoil.

FCPO - JAKARTA, June 12 - Malaysian palm oil futures closed lower for a second straight day on Friday as worries over weak exports and a retreat in rival soybean and crude oil prices prompted long liquidation, traders said.

The benchmark August contract on the Bursa Malaysia's Derivatives Exchange settled down 20 ringgit, or 0.8 percent, to 2,465 ringgit ($712.04) per tonne. Overall volume was 16,137 lots of 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES - BANGKOK, June 12 - Southeast Asian stock markets ended mixed on Friday, with lender DBS Group and developer Keppel Land pushing Singapore down for a second day, while bourses in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand inched higher.

Rising oil prices triggered concerns that inflation could
derail an economic recovery, analysts said.

Singapore inched down 0.2 percent, after a 0.4 percent loss on Thursday, while Vietnam fell 0.3 percent, reversing a 2.8 percent rise the day before.

Vietnam fared best for the week, rising 6.4 percent since Monday, followed by a four percent gain in Thailand.

Malaysia inched up 0.1 percent on Friday, adding to a 1.6 percent gain over the past two days. Indonesia edged up 0.06 percent, after a 0.9 percent fall on Thursday.