4:00PM NY – 10:00PM Germany
Energy stocks rose on two-month high oil price. Drug stocks gained on better profit forecast from Pfizer and Pulte Homes led the home builder stocks on broker comments.


Yield on 10-year bond closed at 4.458% and the 30-year bond closed at 4.561%.

Gold declined 40 cents to close at $652.50 a troy ounce, silver advanced 1.5 cents to end at $14.13 a troy ounce and copper increased 0.10 cents to close at 319.65 cents a lb.

Oil gained 43 cents to close at $62.89 a barrel and heating oil increased 0.67 cents to finish at 180.20 cents a gallon. Gasoline was up 32.94 cents to end at 200 cents a gallon. Natural gas decreased 7.1 cents to close at $8.80 per mBtu.

Asian markets ended higher led by Malaysia with a gain of 1.51%, Japan with an advance of 1.23% and Hong Kong with an increase of 0.96%. The only decliner was Philippines with a loss of 1.21%. Asian markets closed higher helped by gains in export-related shares.

European markets closed lower after some weak U.S. manufacturing data placed further pressure on the dollar. The leader was France with a decline of 1%, followed by Spain with a decrease of 0.92% and Germany with a loss of 0.86%. There were no advancers.

Latin America markets finished higher led by Mexico with an advance of 0.83%, Canada with a gain of 0.80% and Argentina with an increase of 0.30%. The only decliner was Brazil with a decrease of 0.09%.

1:00PM European markets closed lower amid weak U.S. dollar.
European stock markets finished in the negative territory Thursday, pressured by weak U.S. manufacturing data which added to the continuous weakness of the dollar. The euro hit a 20-month high of $1.3274, while the pound reached a 14-year peak of $1.9694. The weaker U.S. currency hurt exporter issues like automakers and technology stocks. Car maker Volkswagen slipped 23.8%, while electronics conglomerate Philips Electronics lost 0.89%. However, resource stocks posted gains, helping to limit losses. Oil major BHP Billiton and mining company Xstrata, both dropped 1%. Consumer-oriented stocks were also in the spotlight, with home improvement retailer Kingfisher which lost 2.1% on weaker sales, and Danone Group, falling 1.95 after recent strength. The French CAC 40 led decliners, falling 1%, followed by the German DAX 30, down 0.9%, and London FTSE 100, down 0.6%.

Crude oil prices crossed $63 on strong buying interest. Crude oil January contract rose 62 cents to $63.08 a barrel. Heating oil added marginally to $18010 a gallon, while gasoline was steady at $1.6706. Natural gas gained 6 cents to $8.93 per 1,000 cubic feet. London Brent climbed 42 cents to $63.49. The U.S. dollar tumbled against its major currency rivals. The euro hit a 14-year high vs. the dollar and was quoted at $1.3253, up from $1.3150. The dollar bought 115.69 yen, down from 116.31. The British pound was quoted at $1.9635, up from $1.9580. European gold prices climbed, as the dollar dropped. In London, gold traded at $647.10 per troy ounce, up from $635.50. In Zurich, the precious metal traded at $647.05 per ounce, up from $637.05. Silver closed at $13.91, up from $13.64.


11:30AM Contraction in Midwest business activity dragged stocks down.
U.S. stocks declined as an unexpected contraction in Midwest business activity raised concerns about the outlook for corporate profits. The Chicago purchasing managers'' index fell to 49.9 in November from 53.5 in October, below expectations of increase to 55.0. Wal-Mart Stores Inc.''s forecast for little improvement in December sales added to the downward trend. Wal-Mart (WMT: chart) was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 and the Dow as the retailer dropped 1.6% after forecasting flat to 1% higher December same-store sales. Further weakness to the retail sector was provided by shares of J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP: chart) which dropped 3.7% after the retailer said November same-store sales rose a less-than-expected 1.4%. Teen clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF: chart) fell 4.2% after posting a 3% decline in November same-store sales rather than a 3% increase.

Shares of defense stocks moved lower. Dow component Boeing Co. (BA: chart) dropped 1.4% to $87.65, while chemical maker DuPont Co. (DP: chart) slipped 1.9% to $47. The downside movement was limited by gains for energy and gold shares which benefited from a considerable rise by crude oil and gold prices, respectively. Exxon (XOM: chart) shares rose 0.9% at $76.64 on the NYSE. Housing stocks also posted strong gains after Banc of America upgraded its rating on the sector to neutral from underweight. In corporate news, Pfizer (PFE: chart) rose 2% after it raised its full-year profit outlook and said its development pipeline would produce a number of late stage products in the coming years. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 50.55 points, or 0.41%, at 12,176.18. The Standard & Poor''s 500 Index was down 5.54 points, or 0.40%, at 1,393.94. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 12.66 points, or 0.52%, at 2,419.57.


10:30AM The Sensex advances in volatile trading boosted by domestic growth.
The Sensex on BSE finished 79.58 points, or 0.58%, higher at 13,696.31. The market-breadth was negative. For 1,341 shares that declined on BSE, 1,217 advanced and 58 shares were unchanged. From the Sensex 30 stocks, 18 advanced while the rest declined. The turnover on BSE was Rs 3,954 crore, lower than Rs 4,409 crore on Wednesday. The turnover on NSE was Rs 12,725.13 crore, much higher than Rs 8,083.89 crore on Wednesday.

Economic news

The economic growth of India unexpectedly accelerated to 9.2% last quarter, driven by government and consumer spending that may force the central bank to raise interest rates to curb inflation. The expansion reported by the Central Statistical Organisation in New Delhi today was more than the 8.9% predicted by economists for the three months ended Sept. 30 from a year earlier.

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