Surprise Witch
While volume was high,
volatility was surprisingly low this Triple Witch Friday.Â
Crude-oil futures and petroleum products were mixed. At midday trading Friday
investors questioned Russia’s
commitment to extend export cuts through the second quarter of 2002, though the
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced it will maintain
its cut at their meeting Friday.
April crude-oil futures
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the New York Mercantile Exchange. April heating oil
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0.94 to 64.76 cents a gallon. April unleaded gasoline
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higher by 0.95 cent to 80.90 cents a gallon and April natural gas
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OPEC met investors’ expectations in Vienna Friday after it said it would
continue its output cuts through the second quarter. The group plans to meet
again in June.
Russia’s deputy energy minister said Russia is only “technically” prepared to
extend its agreement to limit exports through the second quarter of this year.
Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter after OPEC member Saudi Arabia,
had promised a reduction in its exports for the first quarter only.
Stocks advanced Friday as a trio of healthy economic readings boosted hopes that
a recovery is underway.
The
June Dow Jones Industrial Average futures
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82.000 to 10617.000.
The June Nasdaq futures
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13.50 points to 1504.000, following a 7.89-point decline in the previous
session.
The
June Standard & Poor’s 500 futures
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1166.800.
U.S. Treasury bond prices, managed to push their way higher in what some
analysts said was a counter-reaction to the big bond selloff in recent sessions.
The June 30 yr.
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yr. note
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In the currency markets, the June dollar
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flat against the euro
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Soybean futures edged lower on the Chicago Board of Trade after big gains in the
previous session. The market was under pressure from news that China was
considering imposing an import tariff on U.S. soybeans in retaliation for
Washington’s decision to impose tariffs on steel imports. May soybeans
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rose 3.00 or 1.07% to $2.82 1/4 a bushel; May corn
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its 207.00 support line to end at 205.750, down 2.00.
Precious metals were trading mixed. April gold
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low, where it found some support and inched up to $290.100 a troy ounce, $1.10
lower from Thursday. May silver
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an early $4.45 low and was 1.5 cents better than Thursday at $4.51 an ounce by
the session close it ended at 449.300 down .700. May copper
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ended higher at 75.050 up .550.