DJI- NEW YORK Feb 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday for first time in five sessions and gold suffered its biggest one-day drop in more than three years after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke disappointed investors who had hoped for a strong signal of more stimulus.
The major U.S. stock indexes still posted solid gains for the month, and the Nasdaq briefly topped 3,000 on Wednesday for the first time since December 2000.
Bernanke, in testimony to Congress, gave a tempered view of the U.S. economy, pouring cold water on the notion that recent upbeat signs herald a stronger recovery. But he gave no hint of new asset purchases, which the Fed has used in recent years to boost growth.
The government reported the U.S. economy grew 3.0 percent in the fourth quarter, revised up from its prior estimate of 2.8 percent. The Fed in its Beige Book, an anecdotal report on regional activity, said the U.S. economy expanded modestly in
January through mid-February.
But the disappointment over Bernanke's failure to hint at more stimulus and the end of the European Central Bank's second round of cheap bank loans drove sentiment.
At the close, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 53.05 points, or 0.41 percent, at 12,952.07. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 6.50 points, or 0.47 percent, at 1,365.68. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 19.87 points, or 0.67 percent, at 2,966.89.
NYMEX- NEW YORK, Feb 29 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose after a boomerang session on Wednesday, rallying late in the open outcry session after being pressured by data showing crude oil stockpiles rose sharply last week.
Analysts and brokers said crude found support below the $105 level, then rallied back above the 10-day moving average, which Reuters data put at $105.80.
A liquidity infusion by the European Central Bank and a later Federal Reserve Beige Book report that said the U.S. economy expanded modestly in January through mid-February also provided support to oil prices.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, April crude rose 52 cents, or 0.49 percent, to settle at $107.07 a barrel, having traded from $104.84 to $107.43.
CBOT SOYBEANS- Soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade extended their rally to eight days, setting a five-month peak on export demand for U.S. soybeans from top buyer China and fund-driven buying, traders said.
Spot soybeans ended February up 9.6 percent, the biggest monthly rise since December 2010.
Soymeal posted the biggest gains in the complex on Wednesday, driven by so called "black box" or programmed trade, typically involving hedge funds, traders said, while soyoil fell.
Soybeans shrugged off pressure from a firmer dollar, normally a bearish signal for dollar-backed grains. The currency rose after analysts said the U.S. Federal Reserve chairman hinted the bank was in no rush to expand its balance sheet on the same day data painted a brighter picture of the U.S. economy.
USDA confirmed sales of 285,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans to China, including 175,000 for 2011/12 delivery and 110,000 for 2012/13.
Soy crushers in China, the world's top buyer of the oilseed, have increased output in recent weeks because of improved crushing margins, which should boost soy imports, an official think-tank said.
FCPO- SINGAPORE, Feb 29 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures fell on Wednesday, pressured by concerns about slowing demand and the stronger ringgit currency, although hopes that the European Central Bank will offer cheap loans to European banks helped limit losses.
The ringgit-priced palm oil feedstock is now more expensive for refiners as the currency gained further against the dollar, slashing gains in palm oil prices this month to 6.2 percent from Tuesday's 7 percent.
Malaysian export numbers for February also pointed to slowing demand prospects. Some market players attributed this to a shift in orders to top producer Indonesia, which halved its export taxes for refined products.
"I think part of the reason exports are slowing could be Indonesia getting a bigger slice of the market share," said Selena Leong, an analyst at DMG & Partners Research in Singapore.
Benchmark May palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 0.8 percent to close at 3,270 ringgit ($1,092) per tonne. It touched an intraday high of
3,321 ringgit on Tuesday, the highest since June 9 last year. Traded volumes stood at 21,483 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the usual 25,000 lots.
REGIONAL EQUITY- BANGKOK, Feb 29 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets climbed on Wednesday as a continued recovery in global stock markets lured bargain-hunters to riskier assets and as investors snapped up shares of firms with favourable quarterly earnings and positive outlooks.
Trading volume picked up as more foreign funds flowed into regional assets, with market turnover in Malaysia and Vietnam surging well above the 30-day averagee.
Among major market movers on Wednesday, Singapore-listed commodity trader Noble Group Ltd surged as much as 5 percent at one point on expectations its earnings will improve this year. It closed up 3.3 percent.
Foreign investors bought 3.5 billion baht ($115 million) of Thai shares and 298.12 million ringgit ($99 million) of Malaysian, stock exchange data showed.
