London Stocks End Up; Quarter Sees Gain Of 3.5%

FTSE 100 ends up 0.5% at 5768.45 and closes up 3.5% for the quarter. Investors have picked up bargains in industrials, miners and autos following declines in March. Petrofac is the biggest gainer, up 5.0%. Defensive stocks such as tobacco and pharma close in the red. Despite the positive end to the quarter, Angus Campbell at Capital Spreads is a little cautious. Continue Reading…

May soybeans were trading 1 cent higher late in the overnight session. China futures closed 0.8% lower on the session and palm oil futures in Malaysia were down 0.7% closing lower for the third session in a row. Asian equity markets were up strongly overnight and therefore they managed to finish the quarter on a strong note. Continue Reading…

May crude oil prices traded higher during the overnight and initial morning hours, as they tried to recover from this week’s more than $5.00 break. Some of the early support this morning comes from a positive outside market tone, with a rally in global equity markets and a new four-week low in the USD. Continue Reading…

May wheat was trading 1 1/4 cents higher late in the overnight session. Outside market forces look supportive this morning with a weaker USD and strength in equity markets. Traders await the results of the USDA stocks and planted acreage reports for direction this morning. Continue Reading…

May natural gas prices registered another contract low during the early morning hours and it also satisfied a downside technical target at $2.11. It seems that the natural gas market received more confirmation of burdensome supplies and insufficient storage with yesterday’s EIA storage report. Continue Reading…

Like gold, May silver has also managed to claw its way back above the prior session’s high in the early Friday US trade action. Clearly a partial risk on vibe is in place to start today, as global equity markets rebounded off what appears to be quarter end action. Continue Reading…

May cocoa has put together a modest recovery this morning but remains far below the recent trading range, as $130 in losses during the past two sessions has created another down-leg on the charts. While stronger global equity markets and a slumping Dollar have been a key source of support this morning, negative outside market factors have provided considerable headwinds for the cocoa market this week. Continue Reading…

While June gold has managed to take out the prior session’s high in the early going today, one can’t help but feel that the brunt of the initial gains today are primarily technical short covering from the high to low slide this week of $53 an ounce in gold prices. Continue Reading…

The results of the USDA Planted Acreage report should help set the tone for the market today. Traders see US acreage near 12.75 million acres or down near 13% from last year. In February, the National Cotton Council pegged 2012 plantings at 13.63 million bales, down 7.4% from last year. Continue Reading…

Not surprisingly, the Treasury market has started out a little weaker in the wake of positive global equity market action overnight. Treasury prices might also be trading softer this morning in anticipation of minor gains in US Personal Spending and Income readings that are due out later this morning. In retrospect, Treasuries had a less than stellar reaction to this week’s supply flows and that in turn might suggest to some, that the flight to quality vibe off all things European is no longer a front burner issue. Continue Reading…