Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, July 2 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Friday and were on track for their worst week in two months as disappointing jobs data joined other economic reports pointing to a slowing of the recovery.

Adding to stocks' weaker tone was a technical move that indicated more selling pressure may be ahead. The S&P 500's 50-day moving average broke below its 200-day moving average, a break known as the "death cross."

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 76.40 points, or 0.78 percent, to 9,656.13. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> lost 7.13 points, or 0.69 percent, to 1,020.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> dipped 15.00 points, or 0.71 percent, to 2,086.36.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, July 2 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures fell for the fifth day in a row on Friday, as U.S. employment in June fell for the first time this year, adding to worries that the economic recovery is stalling.

For the week, front-month crude traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange slid for the first time in four weeks. In the process, it suffered the steepest decline since the first trading week of May, at the onset of the euro-zone's sovereign debt troubles.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, August crude ended down 81 cents, or 1.11percent, at $72.14 a barrel, the lowest since June 8's $71.99 close. It traded from $71.62, lowest since the June 8 intraday low of $70.75, to $73.38.

CBOT-CHICAGO, July 2 (Reuters) - CBOT grain and soy complex closing trends on Friday.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - July up 11-1/2 cents per bushel at $9.65 per bushel. Tight soy stocks and firm cash markets continue to support nearbys. Advances in back months limited by good U.S. crop weather and profit-taking ahead of the three-day weekend.

CBOT-SOYOIL - July up 0.13 cent at 36.00 cents per lb. Short-covering bounce after the declines on Thursday and ahead of the weekend.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures hit a fresh seven-and-a-half month low on Friday as sentiment was dampened by concerns that China, a major importer of palm oil, could slow purchases amid an economic slowdown.

With ample stocks and abnormal weather condition this season, the world's largest palm oil importer has slowed down imports, said an oil analyst in Shanghai.

Currently the Asian nation has about 700,000 tonnes to one million tonnes of palm oil stocks at the its major ports.

In Malaysia, the benchmark September crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 0.4 percent or 10 ringgit on Friday at 2,335 ringgit ($722). It hit an intraday low of 2,328 ringgit, a level not seen since Nov. 17 last year. Traded volume was light at 8,853 lots of 25 tonnes each, compared to usual 10,000 lots.

Malaysian crude palm oil lost 2.7 percent this week on concerns about the global economic recovery. Malaysian traders said price of the vegetable oil could fall to as much as 2,250 ringgit -- lowest since Nov 13 last year -- if the bearish sentiment prevails.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, July 2 (Reuters) - Singapore shares rose almost 1 percent on Friday as investors bought banks, optimistic about their upcoming quarterly results, but most other regional markets fell amid concerns over the U.S. and global economic outlook.

The Straits Times Index <.FTSTI> ended up 0.85 percent as players sought companies likely to report positive second-quarter earnings later in the month.

Gains in the city-state were led by a 1.5 percent rise in Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp . Southeast Asia's largest bank, DBS , was up 0.9 percent while smaller rival United Overseas Bank was 0.5 percent higher.

Singapore has lost 1.8 percent so far this year, Southeast Asia's worst performer.

Najeeb Jarhom, head of research at Singapore-based broker AmFraser, said Singapore's valuations might not be demanding with the index trading at a price to book ratio of 1.55, below its historical 1.63 times average, with price to earnings at 13-14 times, below its average of 15.

Other markets in the region were mostly lower, with Malaysia <.KLSE>, Indonesia <.JKSE> and Vietnam <.VNI> all a tad lower and the Philippines <.PSI> down 0.7 percent. Thailand <.SETI> bucked the trend, ending up 0.7 percent.