Friday, November 4, 2011

Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Global stocks and crude oil rallied on Thursday on rising hopes Greece will abandon plans to hold a referendum over a euro-zone bailout and after the European Central Bank cut interest rates in a surprise move.

Greece's teetering government backed away from a proposed referendum on staying in the euro, while European leaders talked for the first time of a possible Greek exit to preserve the single currency.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> jumped 208.43 points, or 1.76 percent, to close at 12,044.47. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 23.25 points, or 1.88 percent, to end at 1,261.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 57.99 points, or 2.20 percent, to end at 2,697.97.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, Nov 3 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose a second straight session on Thursday as fresh indications Greece will avoid a nationwide referendum on its bailout and a surprise European Central Bank interest rate cut pushed oil and equities higher.

Greece's teetering government backed away from a proposed referendum on staying in the euro on Thursday, while European leaders talked for the first time of a possible Greek exit to preserve the single currency.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, December crude rose $1.56, or 1.69 percent, to settle at $94.07 a barrel, having traded from $90.87 to $94.61, only 21 cents under front-month crude's 200-day moving average at $94.82.

CBOT-SOYBEANS, Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures closed higher on renewed optimism about a solution to the euro zone debt issue. Equities and crude oil rose and the dollar weakened on increased hopes for the euro zone.

Light deliveries on the November at 9 contracts and strong commercial stopping of the recent deliveries lift the soybean market. Wet weather over the next week to 10 days will slow the remaining harvest of the U.S. corn and soybean crops.

FCPO-JAKARTA, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures rose to a near one-week high on Thursday, as expectations of lower Southeast Asian output buoyed prices late in the session, with uncertainty surrounding the euro zone debt crisis capping gains.

Benchmark January palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange ended 0.6 percent higher at 2,976 Malaysian ringgit ($950) a tonne after going as high as 2,978 ringgit.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets pulled lower on Thursday, led by financials and resource shares, as investors booked quick profits in the face of deteriorating euro zone debt problems.

The falls came in light volume, reflecting uncertainty after Greece's prime minister announced a referendum on the euro zone's planned bail-out for the country.

Malaysia posted 85 million ringgit ($27 million) in outflows, erasing 80 million ringgit in inflows on Wednesday, stock exchange data showed.

In Singapore, United Overseas Bank Ltd and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd were among the losers, sliding 2.6 percent and 1.2 percent respectively, after weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings.