DJI - NEW YORK, Nov 30 (Reuters) - The
S&P 500 wrapped up its fifth positive month in the last six on Friday,
although it ended the day flat as politicians remain at odds about how to avoid
the so-called fiscal cliff.
Trading has been choppy in the last
two weeks as investors react to statements from policymakers on the state of
discussions on how to avert a series of tax hikes and spending cuts that could
pull the economy back into recession.
The S&P 500 was up 0.29 percent
in November even as it suffered a slide of more than 6 percent from the month's
high to its low.
"Given the 'on again, off
again' fiscal cliff (negotiations), it’s rather surprising how resilient this
market has been," said David Rolfe, chief investment officer at St.
Louis-based Wedgewood Partners.
"Between now and the end of the
year, there's going to be an information vacuum outside the fiscal cliff, and I
believe that resiliency will be tested."
On Friday, President Barack Obama
accused a "handful of Republicans" in the U.S. House of
Representatives of holding up legislation to extend tax cuts for middle-class
Americans in order to try to preserve them for the wealthy.
The Dow Jones industrial average ose 3.76 points, or
0.03 percent, to 13,025.58 at the close. The S&P 500 gained a mere 0.23
of a point, or 0.02 percent, to finish at 1,416.18. But the Nasdaq Composite
Index .dipped
1.79 points, or 0.06 percent, to end at 3,010.24.
For the month of November, the
S&P 500 rose 0.29 percent, its smallest monthly variation since March 2011.
The Dow fell 0.5 percent and the Nasdaq gained 1.1 percent.
For the week, though, all three
major U.S. stock indexes advanced, with the Dow up 0.1 percent, the S&P 500
up 0.5 percent and the Nasdaq up 1.5 percent.
U.S. consumer spending fell in
October for the first time in five months and income growth stalled, leading
some economists to cut already weak estimates of fourth-quarter economic
growth.
Slightly more than 7 billion shares
changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT, more
than the daily average so far this year of about 6.48 billion shares and the
largest in two weeks.
On the NYSE, roughly six issues rose
for every five that fell, while on Nasdaq, the ratio was nearly 1 to 1.
NYMEX - SINGAPORE, Nov 30 (Reuters) - U.S.
crude dropped below $88 per barrel on Friday as key budget talks to avert a
looming fiscal disaster in the United States appeared to be stalling, denting
the outlook for oil demand from the world's top consumer.
CBOT Soybean - Nov 30 (Reuters) - Soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade fell 0.6
percent on Friday on long liquidation and profit-taking at the end of the
month, along with forecasts for welcome rains in crop areas of Brazil, traders
said.
- Soymeal
and soyoil also fell, following soybeans.
- CBOT
reported no soymeal deliveries on first notice day against CBOT December
futures while soyoil deliveries totaled 2,200 contracts, both within trade
expectations.
- Beneficial
rains are expected in Brazil's
southern grain belt over the weekend, forecaster Somar said, boosting crop
prospects after the main corn and soy region received far less rain than
usual in November. "December will start with more concentrated rains
over Brazil's
center and south," Somar said in a daily report.
- Talk that China was buying soybeans from Brazil instead of the United States
added pressure.
- Spot CBOT
soybeans rose
1.5 percent for the week, the second straight weekly gain since falling to
a five-month low. However, soybeans posted their third straight monthly
loss, the longest slump in a year and a half.
- Spot
soymeal and
soyoil futures each posted a second straight weekly advance, but ended lower for
the month.
- Planting
delays in Argentina
due to wet weather underpinned the market. Argentina's farmers have
planted 58 percent of the country's soybean crop, compared with 66 percent
a year ago, the country's Agriculture Ministry said in a weekly report.
- Firm U.S. cash
soy markets lent support. Cash bids surged Friday in Cincinnati,
on the Ohio River, where soybeans are in demand because draft restrictions
on barges and tugs on part of the Mississippi River
are expected to slow traffic on that waterway.
- Cargill
Inc's barge company Cargo Carriers said it was limiting drafts on
northbound barges on the Mississippi River
to 8 feet due to low water and will soon impose similar curbs on
southbound vessels.
- Malaysian
palm oil futures edged lower and posted a third straight monthly loss as
top analysts warned that record high stocks would weigh on prices in the
new year.
FCPO - SINGAPORE, Nov 30 (Reuters) -
Malaysian palm oil futures edged lower on Friday and posted their third
straight monthly loss, with investors staying cautious after top analysts
warned that record high stocks would weigh on prices in the new year.
But losses were limited by a
surprise increase in Malaysian exports in November from a month ago, easing
concerns that record high stocks would climb further for the month.
Exports rose to 1.66 million tonnes
in November from October's 1.61 million, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing
Services said on Friday. Another surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance,
reported November shipments at 1.65 million tonnes, up from last month's 1.57
million.
"The export surprise is likely
to limit the downside because end-stocks are going to be flat to slightly lower
for November. The market is also taking some time to digest the analysts'
comments," said a dealer with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia.
The benchmark February contract on the Bursa
Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 0.7 percent at 2,370 ringgit ($780)
per tonne, off an earlier low at 2,359 ringgit, a level not seen since Nov. 14.
For the month, prices posted a 5 percent loss.
Total traded volumes were thin at
20,776 lots of 25 tonnes each compared to the usual 25,000, underlining
investor caution.
Technicals showed palm oil's target
at 2,353 ringgit per tonne remained unchanged, and a break below will lead to a
further drop to 2,288 ringgit, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Palm oil prices need to trade at the
2,200 ringgit level for the next 4-6 weeks to attract demand that could reduce
and clear stocks, top industry analyst Dorab Mistry said at an Indonesian
industry meeting on Friday.
Leading analyst James Fry of LMC
International raised issues such as uncertainty ahead of Chinese, and possibly
Indian, import rules, although Thomas Mielke of Oil World provided a more
upbeat forecast for palm oil prices.
Analysts and traders surveyed by
Reuters at the conference saw 2013 average palm oil prices at 2,500 ringgit,
down 17.1 percent from 3,016 ringgit calculated so far for this year.
Regional equities - BANGKOK, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Thai
shares hit a 16-1/2 year closing high on Friday, racking up gains for a sixth
straight month, as institutional investors bought big caps while most other
Southeast Asian stock markets edged up on positive global market sentiment.
The Thai SET index ended at 1,324.04,
the highest close since May 1996, posting a 1.8 percent gain for the month,
helped by buying from domestic institutions for retirement mutual funds (RMF)
and long-term equity funds (LTF) with offer tax breaks.
PTTEP's capital raising, announced
earlier on the day, eased concerns about the success of the plan, removing a
key overhang on the company.
Singapore's Straits Times Index finished near an
eight-week high of 3,069.95, rising 1 percent on the month. Malaysia rose for a third
session, up 0.2 percent on the day, but was down 3.7 percent on the month, the region's
worst.
Bucking the trend, Indonesia fell to a near
eight-week-low, down 1.7 percent on the month. Among losers, plantation stock
PT Astra Agro Lestari Tbk dropped 3
percent amid concerns about rising wage costs.
The Philippine stock market was shut on Friday.
It was up 4 percent on the month, the region's best performer.
