Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, Jan 5 (Reuters) - The creation of three times as many private-sector jobs as expected turned Wall Street's early losses into gains on Wednesday, extending a rally investors worried had come too far too fast.

Financial stocks led gains, helped by credit-card companies such as Capital One Finance Corp , which rose 4.2 percent to $45.52. The S&P consumer finance index <.GSPCFI>, which includes major personal finance companies, gained 2.8 percent.

The jump in private payrolls to nearly triple the forecast, comes two days ahead of the government's labor report. Economists boosted forecasts for Friday's payroll growth.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 31.71 points, or 0.27 percent, to 11,722.89. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 6.36 points, or 0.50 percent, to 1,276.56. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> added 20.95 points, or 0.78 percent, to 2,702.20.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, Jan 5 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures prices rallied back above $90 a barrel on Wednesday as unexpectedly big gains in private sector jobs and growth in the services sector bolstered optimism that the U.S. economy's recovery was heating up.

A fire in an industrial complex near Rotterdam in the Netherlands also helped crude futures bounce from early lows.

Brokers and traders also said investors came in to "buy the dip" when support firmed just above $88 a barrel a day after a commodities sell-off left crude down more than 2 percent from Monday's settlement at a 27-month high above $91 a barrel.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, February crude rose 92 cents, or 1.03 percent, to settle at $90.30 a barrel, trading from $88.10 to $90.84.

CBOT-CHICAGO, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade wheat, corn and soybean futures closed higher on Wednesday on short-covering and fund buying following several days of declines tied to fund long-liquidation and profit-taking.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - March up 24 cents at $13.93-1/2 per bushel. Funds bought an estimated net 6,000 to 7,000 contracts.

CBOT-SOYOIL - March up 0.91 cent at $57.76 cents per lb. Funds bought an estimated net 4,000 contracts.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures fell more than 2 percent on Wednesday after a strong New Year rally driven partly by weather concerns lost some steam because of a stronger dollar.

But traders said steep losses were unlikely as vegetable oil markets were eyeing heavy rains that can slow oil palm harvesting in Southeast Asia and drier weather stalling soybean plantings in Argentina.

The dollar held firm in Asian trade after data showed some signs of strength in the U.S. economy.

The benchmark March 2011 crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives lost 80 ringgit to trade at 3,808 ringgit ($1,242.617) per tonne after hitting a 33-month high the previous day.

Traded volumes rose to 22,852 lots of 25 tonnes each, compared to the usual 15,000 lots.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian bourses gained on Wednesday as investors piled into banking stocks, expecting them to gain in a rising interest rate environment, but palm oil shares dropped, tracking a fall in global commodities.

Malaysian shares <.KLSE> scaled another record intra-day high, ending 0.9 percent higher, with market volume more than double the 90-day average on the back of demand from both local and foreign investors, particularly for financial shares, a Kuala Lumpur dealer said.

HSBC Global Research said it had upgraded Malaysia and Singapore to overweight and maintained its overweight stance on Indonesia, seeing these as markets where earnings might be higher than anticipated. It put Thailand and the Philippines at underweight. Differing inflation pressures were one factor.

Stocks in Singapore <.FTSTI> and Thailand <.SETI> hovered around eight-week highs, rising 0.12 percent and 0.8 percent respectively.