What Sparked The Volatility
Crude
oil and unleaded gasoline rallied today in anticipation that there may be a
decline in oil inventories. This will be found out for sure when the
American Petroleum Institute releases supply data later today. April
crude oil
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oil
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In
addition, another round of unconfirmed reports that U.S. troops are entering
Iraq in preparation for a military offensive helped to move the oils. It is the
second consecutive week that such rumors have moved oil prices, only to be later
denied by the Pentagon.
After trading
in a sideways channel between 290.00 and 295.00 for the last several sessions,
April gold
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rallied to close higher at 298.00 up 5.10. The close above the 295.00 resistance
is key. March silver
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5.200. March copper
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Fierce weather in the Plains states
sent wheat futures modestly higher on the Chicago Board of Trade. Prices climbed
as wintry weather blasted prime winter wheat-growing regions, putting more
stress on crops. Then throughout the trading session wheat for May delivery
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bushel; May corn
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0.5 cent to $4.41 a bushel.
The consumer optimism that seemed
to be with the markets yesterday was quickly squashed today with the consumer
confidence numbers coming in lower than expected. The Markets opened up nicely
this morning before falling to their lows early in the game, and posting a late-stage rally
— only to
pull back into negative territory. A somewhat volatile day.
The March S&P 500
futures
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resistance is at 1110.00. The March DJIA futures
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range between 10,025 to 10190. The Dow futures took it on the chin the hardest
closing at 10,100 down 49.00. The March Nasdaq futures
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back to close at 1403.00, down 4.00.