Most people are waiting for the US job employment result, which will be out tonight.

If result good, DOW would surge tonight and next week STI would see more Bull.

If result disappointing, DOW would fall and next week we'll see more volatility in STI.

Stocks stage recovery

Stocks extend a run

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 46 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 index (SPX) rose 5 points, or 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) gained 13 points or 0.6%.

The dollar rose 0.4% against the yen.

World markets: Markets in Europe rallied. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.9%, Germany's DAX gained 1.7% and France's CAC 40 gained 2%.

Asian markets ended higher. Japan's Nikkei rallied 3.2% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.6%.

Commodities: U.S. light crude oil for July delivery rose 43 cents to $73.29 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

COMEX gold for August delivery fell $1.90 to $1,219.60 an ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices fell, pushing the yield on the 10-year note to 3.39% from 3.34% late Wednesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions. 

Jobless claims decline

A separate report Thursday showed private-sector employers added 55,000 jobs to their payrolls in May, for the fourth straight monthly gain.

Coming up Friday, the widely watched jobs report from the Department of Labor is expected to show employers added 500,000 jobs to their payrolls after adding 290,000 the previous month, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The unemployment rate is expected to ease to 9.8% from 9.9% in April.

Six states said new claims fell by more than 1,000. Michigan said claims fell by 2,269, Tennessee had 1,808 fewer claims, Pennsylvania's dropped by 1,597, Georgia's fell by 1,544 and California claims fell 1,206.

Stocks rally 2% on energy boost

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) rose 225.5 points, or 2.3%. The S&P 500 index (SPX) added 28 points, or 2.6%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) rallied 59 points, or 2.6%.

On Tuesday, stocks ended sharply lower, with most of the decline coming in the final hour of trading as investors overlooked better-than-expected economic reports and instead worried about the global economic recovery.

"We're going to keep seeing big swings like this," said Harry Clark, CEO of Clark Capital Management Group. "It's going to be a choppy market for the rest of the summer."

Big movers: Gains were broad-based on Wednesday, with energy stocks leading the way.

All of the Oil and Natural Gas Index's 24 components posted gains, while the Amex Oil Index added 3%, with all 12 of its components also rising.

Halliburton (HAL, Fortune 500) jumped 12%, Schlumberger (SLB) rose nearly 9% and Andarko (APC, Fortune 500) added more than 5%. BP (BP) rose 3%.

On Tuesday, energy shares declined - with BP plunging 15% - after the company's latest attempt to plug the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico failed and Attorney General Eric Holder said there would be a criminal investigation of the spill.

"BP's existence came into question yesterday," said Clark. "Investors put all the other oil companies in the same barrel with BP, but now they're realizing that BP made a mistake but the other companies are doing well."

Transocean (RIG), the operator of the Deepwater Horizon rig that exploded in the Gulf, was an exception, falling more than 3% after dropping 12% on Tuesday.

Technology shares also advanced Wednesday, with IBM (IBM, Fortune 500), Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) and United Technologies (UTX, Fortune 500) all gaining more than 2%.

"Tech has been a laggard, but now people seem to be realizing that tech stocks in general are undervalued and are good buys," said Clark.

Economy: The National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index, a measure of sales contracts for existing homes, rose 6% in April after climbing 5.3% in March. The jump beat the 4.3% increase economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected.

Despite the positive report, economic data has had little impact on the market recently, said Clark.

"The whole theme right now is that the market is being driven minute by minute by news, the fundamentals just don't matter," he said. "But the economy is recovering, so the market will have to eventually respond to that."

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas said employers announced plans to cut 38,810 jobs in May, a 1.3% rise from April's four-year low. However, job cuts were 65% lower than the same month in 2009.

Companies: General Motors and Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) both posted large increases in May sales of the brands they retain, with GM reporting a 32% gain in sales and Ford reporting a 23% increase. Toyota Motor's (TM) sales rose 7%.

"They really helped the idea that the economy isn't falling off a cliff and that there's definitely still demand out there," said Nick Kalivas, vice president of financial research at MF Global.

Ford rose about 4% on Wednesday, while Toyota slipped nearly 1%.

The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission held the latest in a series of hearings on the role of ratings agencies in the market collapse of 2008-2009. Warren Buffett, the widely respected investor and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA, Fortune 500), was among the witnesses. Several representatives of ratings agency Moody's (MCO) were also in attendance.

World markets: In Asia, Japan's Nikkei index slid 1.1% after the nation's prime minister resigned. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index edged lower.

European markets ended mostly lower, although well off the day's lows. London's FTSE 100 slipped 0.2%, Paris' CAC 40 fell 0.1% and Frankfurt's DAX was flat.

Dollar and commodities: The euro rose against the dollar to $1.2241, bouncing back from the four-year low touched the day before.

The dollar edged lower against the British pound and rose more than 1% versus the Japanese yen.

U.S. light crude oil for July delivery turned higher, climbing 28 cents to settle at $72.86 a barrel.

COMEX gold's August contract dropped $4.30 to settle at $1,222.60 per ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices were lower, pushing the benchmark 10-year note's up to 3.34% from 3.26% late Tuesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. 

Rebound seen for stocks

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were higher.

Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.

On Tuesday, stocks ended sharply lower, with most of the decline coming in the final hour of trading.

Economy: May auto and truck sales are due throughout the day. Industry analysts expect auto sales rose to an annual rate of 4.1 million units from 3.9 million in April. Truck sales are expected to have eased slightly.

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas reports on planned job cuts in May before the market opens. A report from the Labor Department on metro area unemployment rates in April is due after the opening bell.

The pending home sales index for April, a measure of sales contracts for existing homes, is expected to have risen 4.3% after climbing 5.3% in March, according to economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The report from the National Association of Realtors is due at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Companies: The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission will hold the latest in a series of hearings on the role of ratings agencies in the market collapse of 2008-2009. Warren Buffett, a widely respected investor and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA, Fortune 500), will testify. Several representatives of ratings agency Moody's (MDO) will also be there.

Separately,Apple (APPL) co-founder and chief executive Steve Jobs will appear at the Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference in Palos Verdes, Calif.

World markets: In Asia, Japan's Nikkei index slid 1.1% after the nation's prime minister resigned. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index edged lower.

European markets opened with declines. London's FT-100 and Paris' CAC 40 slipped 1.2%, while Frankfurt's DAX was off by 1%.

Dollar and commodities: The euro slipped slightly against the dollar to $1.221, about a penny above the 4-year low touched the day before.

The dollar was down against the British pound, but it rose versus the Japanese yen.

U.S. light crude oil for July delivery pulled back 64 cents to $71.94 a barrel.

COMEX gold's August contract dropped $4.90 to $1,222 per ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices were higher, pushing the benchmark 10-year note's down to 3.28% from 3.29% late Tuesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. 

hahaha! Wall Streeters call the Shot!

Nothing.

They are just excuses to push the DOW lower so the BBs can accumulate stocks at bargain price.

We are now in a accumulation phase.

DOW solid bounce to closed off -  Dow  +284.54 pt to 10,258.99 pt by +2.85%

                                             FTSE 100  +157.09 pt to   5,195.17 pt by +3.12%   

Today / current trading Nikkei 225

165.74

9,805.46

Hang Seng

397.45

19,828.82

      SGX / STI is closed for public holiday (no trading) Wishes all a Happy Vesak day

Thursday: 27 MAY 2010

DOW           +284   nO mOre EURO DEBT cOncerns

FTSE           +157   on Energy Stocks

DAX            +179

CAC40        +116

WiLL STi  bOOmz  Or nOt ?

Dow ends below 10,000

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost nearly 70 points, or 0.7%, ending at the lowest point since Feb. 8. The S&P 500 (SPX) index lost 6 points, or 0.6%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) lost 15 points, or 0.7%.

A global market rally and a strong housing market report gave stocks a boost in the morning, but trading was choppy through the rest of the session as the euro weakened. Stocks slipped in the last hour of trading.

Stocks have tumbled in May, with the three major indexes all losing more than 10% each, falling into "correction" mode as investors have worried that Europe's growing debt crisis is going to cut into U.S. and global economic growth.

A $1 trillion aid package announced by European leaders helped temper, but not eliminate, worries about the threat of so-called contagion stemming from problems with debt-plagued nations.

Greece got the ball rolling, but concerns remain about the other so-called PIIGS -- Portugal, Italy, Ireland and most recently, Spain. News that Spain's central bank had to take over one of the nation's oldest savings banks over the weekend ushered in the latest wave of European-crisis driven worries. Reports of heightened tensions between North and South Korea added to jitters Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the euro fell 1.4% versus the dollar but remained above that four-year low. The dollar lost 0.3% against the yen.

Volatility: The CBOE Volatility index, or the VIX (VIX), Wall Street's fear factor, ended modestly higher after having fallen through most of the session. The VIX had dropped as much as 13% as the market initially rallied, but turned higher when stocks fell.

World markets: Stocks around the world rebounded. Markets in Europe gained in late trading. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 2%, Germany's DAX gained 1.6% and France's CAC 40 climbed 2.3%.

Asian markets also bounced back following a steep sell-off Tuesday on increased tension between North and South Korea. Japan's Nikkei gained 0.7% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.1%. China's Shanghai Composite ended just above unchanged.

Commodities: U.S. light crude oil for July delivery rose $2.76 to settle at $71.51 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a gain of over 4%.

COMEX gold for June delivery rose $15.40 to settle at $1,213.40 an ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices tumbled, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.24% from 3.16% late Tuesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Trading volume: Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners beat losers three to two on volume of 1.94 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers topped decliners seven to six on volume of 3.08 billion shares. 

S'pore manufacturing output surges 51% on year in April
Posted: 26 May 2010 1305 hrs

	Photos 1 of 1

SINGAPORE : Singapore's manufacturing output rose for a fifth straight month, surging 51 per cent on year in April.

Excluding biomedical manufacturing, output expanded 31 per cent.

The headline number beat market expectations of about 19 per cent growth.

The Economic Development Board (EDB) says output expanded across all sectors except for the transport engineering cluster.

Output in the biomedical manufacturing cluster nearly doubled, up 95.8 per cent, on year in April, driven by a 102 per cent jump in the pharmaceuticals segment.

EDB says this was due to a different production mix in the active pharmaceutical ingredients.

The electronics cluster grew 60 per cent on year last month, led by semiconductors, as global demand for electronics remained strong.

In the precision engineering cluster, output expanded 56 per cent, spurred by strong demand for semiconductor related equipment worldwide.

Output in the chemicals cluster rose about 25 per cent due in part to new capacity coming online, as well as low base of production last year amidst the global economic downturn.

The general manufacturing cluster grew 17 per cent on year in April.

Bucking the trend, output in the transport engineering cluster fell 23 per cent in April, as a result of fewer ship repair and conversion jobs for the offshore and marine segment.

On a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, Singapore's manufacturing output increased 24 per cent in April.