The declines put an end to three straight days of gains that capped off a 12 percent increase in the S&P 500 since hitting a low on Oct. 4. The Nasdaq stayed in positive
territory, helped by semiconductor shares.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 40.72 points, or 0.35 percent, to end at 11,478.13. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> shed 3.59 points, or 0.30 percent, to 1,203.66. But the Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 15.51 points, or 0.60 percent, to close at 2,620.24.
NYMEX - NEW YORK, Oct 13 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures fell a second straight session on Thursday as soft economic data from China and a report showing rising crude stockpiles in the United States offset drops in product stocks that helped lift heating oil and gasoline futures.
China's trade surplus narrowed for a second straight month in September to $14.5 billion, with both imports and exports lower than expected, reflecting global economic weakness and domestic cooling.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, November crude
CBOT - SOYBEANS, Soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade ended higher for a fourth session, gaining against corn on inter-market spreads a day after the U.S. government trimmed its U.S. soy crop and stocks estimates, traders said.
China, the world's top soy buyer, imported 4.13 million tonnes of soybeans in September, down 11 percent from the year-ago period, Chinese customs data showed. Traders expected imports to pick up for the rest of the year as crushing margins
improve.
FCPO - JAKARTA, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures closed lower on Thursday as the market booked profits after a U.S. report raised the outlook for grain supply that weighed on food commodities.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture made sharply higher revision to global stocks of nearly every type of grain except or U.S. soybeans that are usually crushed to make competing soyoil.
Benchmark December palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange ended 0.7 percent lower at 2,844 Malaysian ringgit ($908) a tonne. The
previous day, the contract hit a near two week high.
REGIONAL EQUITIES - BANGKOK, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets edged up on Thursday as optimism that Europe will take concrete steps to contain its debt woes revived risk appetite but Thai floods hit manufacturing stocks.
Some markets scaled multi-week highs, with active trading volume for most, as foreign funds further built up positions. Malaysia's main share index <.KLSE> climbed 1.15 percent, rising for a third day to a four-week high.
Singapore-listed developers Hongkong Land Holdings Ltd
Hong Kong.
