Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Stocks suffered their biggest one-day loss in nearly six months on Friday as anti-government rioting in Egypt prompted investors to flee to less risky assets to ride out the turmoil.

Increased instability in the Middle East drove up the CBOE Volatility Index <.VIX>, the stock market's fear gauge, as investors scrambled for protective positions.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> ended down 166.13 points, or 1.39 percent, at 11,823.70. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 23.20 points, or 1.79 percent, at 1,276.34. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> fell 68.39 points, or 2.48 percent, at 2,686.89.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, Jan 28 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures ended more than 4 percent higher on Friday, on concerns that civil unrest in Egypt could spread and threaten stability in the Middle East.

Prices rose early after government data showed the U.S. economy grew by 3.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, fueled by a big gain in consumer spending, which prompted hopes for increased energy demand.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for March delivery ended up $3.70, or 4.32 percent, at $89.34 a barrel, after trading from $85.11 to $89.73. It was the biggest one-day gain since Sept. 30, 2009, when prices ended up 5.8 percent.

CBOT-CHICAGO, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade grain and soy complex futures close on Friday.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - March down 1-1/2 cent at $13.98 per bushel. Weighed down by spillover pressure from tumbling wheat market due to concern about export sales and shipments to Egypt. Soy was underpinned by a port strike in Argentina that may eventually delay exports and shift business to the United States.

CBOT-SOYOIL - March down 0.14 cent per lb at 57.27 cents per lb. Following soybeans.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures extended gains on Friday, as worries over heavy rains stalling harvesting lifted prices.

Palm oil is set to post its first monthly loss in seven months, although traders expect the market to gain in the coming days as rains continue to reduce harvesting rounds in key Malaysian oil palm growing regions.

The benchmark April crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives settled up 0.4 percent to 3,700 ringgit($1,212) per tonne.

Traded volume stood at 16,934 lots at 25 tonnes each, compared to the usual 15,000 lots as investors squared positions ahead of the Lunar New year holidays next week.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-COLOMBO, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets closed weaker on Friday, led by Indonesia and Thailand, weighed down by worries over inflation and fears of further monetary tightening by China, analysts said.

Thailand <.SETI> fell 0.5 percent on Friday, giving it a weekly loss of 2.5 percent. The stock exchange reported net selling worth $24 million on the day.

Indonesia <.JKSE>, the region's best performer last year, fell 0.8 percent, led by mining shares, with a net foreign outflow of $28.7 million. But it rose 3.2 percent on the week, the best performance in the region, after healthy gains over the previous three sessions.

Both Jakarta and Bangkok recovered some lost ground after sharp falls of as much as 1.3 percent in early trade.

Malaysia <.KLSE> lost 0.3 percent and the Philippines closed 0.5 percent weaker with less than $1 million in foreign inflows.

Bucking the trend, Singapore <.FTSTI> recovered to close 0.3 percent firmer at its highest close since Jan. 19, while Vietnam <.VNI> rose 1.6 percent to a one-week high.