Bell To Bell Positive
In today’s trade there was
positive bias from the open to the end of the session. The S&P 500 rose 19.61,
or 2.2%, to 933.76, with Hewlett-Packard
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Electric
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The Dec. Nasdaq 100
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Two stocks rose for every one that fell on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Some 2.05
billion shares traded on the exchange, 39% more than the three-month
daily average.
U.S. jobless claims were down 25,000 last
week to 376,000, the best showing in four months. The Conference Board said that
the U.S. index of leading indicators was unchanged at 111.4 in October. Both
the
10-year note and 30-year bond were lower on today’s economic news. The Dec. 10-year note
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closed at 112 275 down -150 and the Dec. 30 year bond
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January crude oil is steady to higher after NATO
gave its support to President Bush’s pressure on Iraq to comply with U.N.
inspections. Jan. crude oil
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gasoline
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close at 71.29 cents a gallon.
The Department of Energy said that natural gas
supplies were down 1 billion cubic feet last week to 3.096 trillion cubic feet,
down 4% from a year ago.
Jan. natural gas
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gained .08 to 4.44
with a 6 to 10 day forecast of below average
temperatures for the eastern two-thirds of the U.S.
In the grains,
export sales were strong again last week for
soybeans. So far this year: Corn exports are down 21% from last year. Soybean
exports are down 1% from last year. Wheat exports are down 5% from last year.
And cotton exports are down 26% from last year. Jan soybeans are steady to
lower.
At the Chicago Board Of Trade (CBOT),
Jan. soybeans
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falling .06 cents or 1.04%
to $5.69 1/4 a bushel.
The USDA said that 177,040 tons of corn and
101,000 tons of soymeal was sold to unknown destinations. South Korea bought
50,000 tons of edible soybeans.
Dec. soy meal
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March
corn
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March wheat futures
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.01 cent to $3.74 1/2 a bushel. March cotton
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The latest USDA drought monitor shows that the
drought has virtually disappeared from the Atlantic coast. The Rocky Mountain
states reaching into Nebraska and Kansas still show severe to exceptional
drought conditions.
Weather.com shows temperatures likely in the 90s
today for Ribeirao Preto, Brazil and then 60% to 70% chances for rain over the
next four days. March coffee
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In the metals, Dec. gold
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closed slightly higher by .10 cents to $317.69 a troy ounce. Dec. silver
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is threatening to break that .74 resistance level by closing at 73.95 cents a
pound up .05 of a cent.