DJI - NEW YORK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - U.S.
stocks fell on Thursday and could be in line for more weakness as worries about
Washington's ability to find a timely solution to the "fiscal cliff"
dominate investor thinking in coming weeks.
The Dow Jones industrial average
lost 121.41 points, or 0.94 percent, to end at 12,811.32. The Standard &
Poor's 500 Index fell 17.02 points, or 1.22 percent, to
1,377.51, ending at its lowest level since Aug. 2. The Nasdaq Composite Index
dropped 41.70 points, or 1.42 percent, to close at 2,895.58.
Investors worry that if no deal is
reached in Congress over some $600 billion in spending cuts and tax increases
due to take effect early next year, the struggling U.S. economy could fall into
recession.
On the data front, the U.S.
government reported a better-than-expected drop in weekly first-time claims for
unemployment benefits as well as a rise in U.S. exports. While that news supported stock
futures early in the U.S. trading day, it was soon overshadowed by the U.S.
fiscal worries.
NYMEX - NEW YORK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - U.S.
crude rose on Thursday, rebounding from a nearly 5 percent plunge the previous
session, though gains were limited by concerns about Europe's economy coupled
with approaching tax increases and spending cuts in the United States.
CBOT Soybean - Soybean
futures on the Chicago Board of Trade fell for a second day
and settled below $15 a bushel for the first time in three weeks
on disappointing weekly U.S. export sales, traders said.
Trade
expectations that USDA will raise its estimate of the U.S. 2012 soybean harvest
in a monthly report on Friday added pressure. The average analyst estimate
ahead of the report was for 2.892 billion bushels, up from USDA's October
estimate of 2.860 billion.
USDA
reported export sales of U.S. soybeans in the latest week at 191,900 tonnes
(186,400 for 2012/13), far below trade expectations for 600,000 to 800,000
tonnes. USDA's figures included cancellations of 545,600 tonnes from unknown
destinations.
China's
state grains authority sold only about 16 percent of the nearly 400,000 tonnes
of soy reserves offered during its weekly auction as crushers put off making
bigger purchases after the government raised bid prices.
FCPO - SINGAPORE, Nov 8 (Reuters) -
Malaysian palm oil futures fell to their lowest in more than a month on
Thursday, tracking losses in global markets caused by renewed worries that
economic woes in the United States and Europe could hurt commodity demand.
Sentiment was also dented by a
gloomy outlook for Europe after the European Commission said the euro zone
economy would barely grow next year.
"There is a lot of uncertainty
after the U.S. election, you have all these problems in Europe, and then
there's also the fiscal cliff," said a trader with a foreign commodities
brokerage in Malaysia.
"Local sentiment for palm is
also bearish, because of high stocks. I don't think palm has any support until
you can see very strong demand followed by a drawdown in stocks, then the
market will stabilise."
Palm oil prices must stay at around
2,200 ringgit a tonne for two months in order to stimulate demand for the
edible oil and reduce high stock levels, leading industry analyst Dorab Mistry
said at a conference in China on Thursday.
Stock levels in Malaysia, the
world's No.2 palm oil producer, may reach a new record at 2.67 million tonnes
in October, a Reuters survey showed on Tuesday.
Regional Equity - BANGKOK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Major
Southeast Asian stock markets fell on Thursday, with Singapore sliding to a
two-month closing low and Malaysia extending losses to six-week lows, as
worries about a looming budget crisis in the United States dented global
sentiment.
Plantation stocks fell along with
weaker Malaysian palm oil futures after broker Macquarie Research downgraded
the plantation sector to 'underweight', reflecting weaker prospects for crude
palm oil prices.
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