DJI - NEW YORK, May 10 (Reuters) - The Dow
and S&P 500 ended at record highs on Friday, and stocks posted a third
consecutive week of gains as a rise in Google and other technology shares
offset a slide in energy stocks.
Stocks have risen on the Federal
Reserve's accommodative monetary stance and some encouraging corporate
earnings, but analysts said momentum could wane without further positive signs.
"I think it's going to hard to
maintain these levels in the short term," said Natalie Trunow, chief
investment officer of equities at Calvert Investment Management, which has
about $13 billion in assets.
"There are not a lot of
positive catalysts to keep it going," she said, noting that spending cuts
by the federal government could pressure the economy in the near term.
Oil prices tumbled as the U.S.
dollar hit a 4 1/2-year high against the yen and the dollar index was on track for its strongest week against
other major currencies in 10 months. A strong dollar makes commodities priced
in the greenback, such as gold and oil, more expensive for foreign investors,
pressuring shares of energy and basic materials companies.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 35.87 points, or 0.24 percent, at 15,118.49. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index was up 7.03 points, or 0.43 percent, at
1,633.70. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 27.41 points, or 0.80 percent, at 3,436.58.
The S&P 500 is up 14.6 percent
for the year. For the week, the Dow rose 1 percent, the S&P 500 1.2 percent
and the Nasdaq 1.7 percent.
CBOT Soybean - May 10 (Reuters) - Benchmark July soybean futures on the
Chicago Board of Trade fell 0.7 percent on Friday, halting a three-day rally, after the U.S.
government forecast that U.S. soybean stocks would more than double in 2013/14,
traders said.
- USDA projected U.S. 2013/14 soybean ending stocks at 265 million bushels, more than double the 125 million in 2012/13.
- In its first official outlook for the new crop year, USDA pegged U.S. 2013/14 soybean production at a record-large 3.390 billion bushels based on an average trend-line yield of 44.5 bushels per acre.
- Front-month May soybeans and May soymeal , which expire next week, continued to gain against back months on spreads, supported by scarce U.S. old-crop soybean supplies and firm cash markets.
- Soyoil gained against soymeal on oil/meal spreads after USDA lowered its forecast of U.S. 2012/13 soyoil ending stocks while leaving its soymeal stocks forecast unchanged.
- Drier weather this weekend into early next week will boost U.S. corn plantings that have fallen to the slowest pace in nearly three decades. But more showers are expected next weekend.
- For the week, July soybeans rose 0.8 percent, their second
straight rise. July soymeal rose 0.1
percent and July soyoil fell 0.1
percent.
Oils - NEW YORK May 10 (Reuters) - Brent
and U.S. crude oil ended slightly down on Friday, after trading sharply lower
for much of the session, rebounding as the U.S. dollar weakened and on late
news reports that more oil would flow through BP Plc's Whiting, Indiana, refinery.
Earlier in the day, the euro had
dropped to a one-month low against the dollar on expectations that the U.S.
Federal Reserve would cut back on it monetary easing program.
But the dollar weakened toward the
end of the day. The U.S. dollar index eased to 83.151 after reaching an earlier high of 83.438.
Crude oil prices are denominated in
U.S. dollars, and when the value of the currency sinks, prices rise to offset
the weakness.
"The dollar has given back a
fairly decent portion of its gains," said Brian LaRose, technical analyst
with United-ICAP in Jersey City.
Brent crude oil settled 56 cents lower at $103.91 per barrel after trading as low as $101.56.
U.S. crude oil futures ended the day 35 cents lower at $96.04 per barrel after trading more than $3
lower at $93.37.
BMD CPO - KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 (Reuters) -
Malaysian palm oil futures climbed to their highest in two weeks on Friday as
stocks eased below the key 2-million-tonne mark in the world's No.2 producer,
but gains were capped by a surprise fall in exports in the first ten days of
May.
Stocks data from industry regulator
the Malaysian Palm Oil Board showed inventory levels at the end of April down
11.3 percent to 1.93 million tonnes against the previous month's 2.17 million
tonnes.
The decline exceeded expectations of
a fall to 2.04 million tonnes, in a Reuters poll.
But exports of palm oil products for
May 1-10 slid 16.7 percent to 380,047 tonnes compared to the same period in
April, as smaller shipments of the crude and refined grade weighed. Demand from
Europe and China was also sluggish.
Another cargo surveyor Societe
Generale de Surveillance reported a steeper 18.4 percent drop late on Friday.
"Traders were reacting to
stocks falling below 2 million tonnes, so we see a strong market today. But
lower exports for the first 10 days may erase some gains," said a trader
with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose as high as 2,334 ringgit per
tonne, a level last seen on April 26. It closed at 2,320 ringgit ($777), up 1.4
percent.
Positive investor sentiment helped
palm post a 3 percent weekly gain, its biggest in seven.
Total traded volumes stood at 29,844
lots of 25 tonnes each, slightly lower than the average 35,000 lots.
Prices dipped to a near 5-month low
on Monday after the ringgit surged against the dollar following the
ruling coalition's win in Malaysia's general elections. It later rose on
bargain hunting and expectations of a drop in inventories.
In other markets, Brent crude oil
slid below $104 a barrel on Friday as rising supplies and doubts over China's
economy outweighed stronger signs of a U.S. recovery.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S.
soyoil for July delivery was almost flat in late Asian trade. The
most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange rose 2.1 percent.
