15th March - Friday Mid month

Good morning traders

Asian Stocks Gain as U.S. Jobless Claims Drop Before BOJ
By Jonathan Burgos - Mar 15, 2013 8:37 AM GMT+0800

Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark index poised to advance for a fourth week, after U.S. jobless claims unexpectedly dropped and as Japan’s upper house prepares to vote on Haruhiko Kuroda’s nomination as central bank governor.
Honda Motor Co. (7267), the Japanese carmaker that gets 44 percent of sales from North America, gained 2 percent. Nikon Corp., which makes cameras and chip-manufacturing equipment, rose 2.1 percent in Tokyo after the Nikkei newspaper reported that the company won a 6 billion yen ($62 million) order from Intel Corp. Woodside Petroleum Ltd., Australia’s second-largest oil producer, added 1.3 percent as crude futures increased.
Enlarge image
Employees work on the trading floor of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo. Photographer: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Bloomberg
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) climbed 0.5 percent to 136 as of 9:35 a.m. Tokyo time, before markets in China and Hong Kong open. The gauge is heading for a 0.3 percent advance this week as a faster-than-expected increase in U.S. retail sales and a decline in weekly jobless claims added to signs the world’s biggest economy is recovering.
“Growing optimism about the U.S. economy pushes markets up, even though concerns about China continue to linger.” said Matthew Sherwood, head of investment markets research in Sydney at Perpetual Investments, which manages about $25 billion.
This week’s gain in the Asian benchmark has been limited by data that showed China’s consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in 10 months and People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan saying monetary policy is “no longer relaxed.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

good morning....i am back again !

been block...too long didn't come into BC [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

welcome back and happy returns

cals upgrade to admin ady~~ huat ar~ +1
haha

first thing is update JF to privilege member +1 Huat aaaa

Cals wrote:first thing is update JF to privilege member +1 Huat aaaa

TQTQ huat every one huat

JF wrote:

Cals wrote:first thing is update JF to privilege member +1 Huat aaaa

TQTQ huat every one huat

WW also upgraded to privilege member congrats mate, keep it up

WW and my point nearest register date also 2 days different

JF wrote:WW and my point nearest register date also 2 days different

congrats both of you made it cause your rep is double lol

Market Open KLCI struggles in early trade
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Surin Murugiah of theedgemalaysia.com
Friday, 15 March 2013 09:10


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KUALA LUMPUR (March 15): The FBM KLCI struggled to stay in positive territory in early trade slipped into the red shortly after the opening bell, weighed by losses including at Petronas-linked counters and other blue chips.

At 9.10am, the FBM KLCI dipped 0.98 points to 1,639.76.

Gainers led losers by 83 to 44, while 86 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 37.6 million shares valued at RM23.53 million.

Among the early losers were Petronas Dagangan, Petronas Gas, KLK, Hong Leong Bank, GAB, Amway, Public Bank and Hartalega.

BIMB Securities Research in a market preview Friday said that improving economic progress continued to be the main catalysts for US stocks as the latest lower jobless claims boosted the Dow Jones Indutrial Average to another record high at 14,539 (+84 points).

The research house said that with the benchmark index registering 11% gain year-to-date, investors may be pondering their strategy over the short term.

“We reckon a consolidation may occur anytime soon as the risk/reward gap had narrowed over the past weeks,” it said.

BIMB Securities said that in Europe, equities were higher as many are hopeful that some positives can be derived from the 2-day Summit attended by European policymakers.

It said Asian markets on the contrary were mixed, as foreign funds may be gravitating back to the west.

“Domestically, the FBM KLCI lost 5.48 points to 1,640.74 as recent uptrend boosted by foreign funds may just be temporary.

“Going forward, we expect the index to oscillate within a tight range of 1,600/50 until the election dust dissipates,” it said.

Asian shares shrugged off three days of losses on Friday as global risk sentiment was buoyed by new U.S. data overnight suggesting a steady recovery in the world's largest economy.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan inched up 0.3 percent after falling in the past three sessions as investors took profits from regional rallies that took some of the national indexes to record peaks or multi-year highs.

Mbb, KSL banyak panas

Cals wrote:

JF wrote:WW and my point nearest [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] register date also 2 days different [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

congrats both of you made it cause your rep is double lol [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

my rep was deducted previously in guessing closing price games...[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Cals wrote:Mbb, KSL banyak panas

any news? MBB bb are coma !

Global

Global Semicon Equipment Sales Fall 15.1% To US$36.93b In 2012. Worldwide sales of semiconductor manufacturing equipment
fell 15.1% to US$36.93bil (RM114.81bil) in 2012 from US$43.53bil in 2011 but amid a decline, Taiwan emerged as the biggest
spender. "Taiwan surpassed North America as the region with the highest amount of spending with US$9.53bil in equipment sales,"
according to the US-based Semiconductor Equipment Industry (SEMI) trade body. In a statement posted on its website on
Wednesday, SEMI said spending rates fell for all the regions tracked in the Worldwide Semiconductor Equipment Market Statistics
(SEMS) Report, except for South Korea and Taiwan. (The Star)
Malaysia

Record Funds Raised, Malaysia's Capital Market Grew 16.4% To Rm2.47 Trillion. Malaysia's capital markets raised the highest
amount of funds ever last year, posting a double-digit growth year-on-year despite global market uncertainty stemming from
economic and political factors. The Securities Commission's (SC) 2012 annual report showed that the capital markets grew 16.4% to
RM2.47 trillion, with equity market capitalisation increasing by 14.1% to RM1.46 trillion, debt securities outstanding rising 19.8% to
pass the RM1-trillion mark, assets under management expanding 19.2% to RM505.1bil and the Islamic capital market growing 22.6%
to RM1.41 trillion. Total funds raised were the highest on record at RM145.9bil, of which RM123.8bil was raised through bond and
sukuk, making the Malaysian market the fourth-most active in Asia for corporate issuance, with the bond market the third-largest in
Asia relative to gross domestic product. (The Star)

Ratings Beat The US, UK. The Malaysian capital market scored highly in an international assessment recently, even bettering the US,
the UK, Australia and Japan. Its capital market regulatory framework, as evaluated by International Monetary Fund and World Bank,
scored 92 %, with ratings "fully implemented" for 34 out of 37 principles of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions
that were assessed. The US scored 55 %, the UK and Australia 64 % and Japan 59 %. (Business Times)
Asia Pacific

Kuroda Clears First Hurdle. The lower house of Parliament approved Haruhiko Kuroda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan
yesterday, heralding a shift to more aggressive monetary easing aimed at ending nearly 20 years of deflation. Passage was
guaranteed in the lower house, where Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has a majority. The LDP
lacks a majority in the upper house, but the government's nominations are expected to be passed by that chamber today with
support from opposition parties. Approval in both houses of Parliament is necessary for the nominees to take control of the central
bank after its current leadership steps down next Tuesday. The BoJ has agreed to buy assets or make loans totalling 101 trillion yen
by the end of this year, part of which includes buying government bonds with a maturity of up to three years. (Reuters)

Philippine Central Bank Runs Low On Intervention Funds. The Philippine central bank has cleaned out its coffers over the past year,
spending billions of pesos to shield its currency and economy from the impact of large inflows of foreign money. Now, as the cash
flows to fund market intervention dry up, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) knows it is facing tough -- and limited -- choices. Over
the past year, BSP data shows it has spent 6 billion pesos to 10 billion pesos ($148-$246 million) each month, and slashing that
expense is the most pressing need. BSP data shows its net worth included a surplus of 115 billion pesos in January 2012. That had
shrunk to 37.9 billion by November, or less than $1 billion, and may now have disappeared. (Reuters)

Australia Adds 71,500 Jobs, The Biggest Jump Since 2000. Australia added 71,500 jobs in February, a huge jump and the biggest rise
in total employment in more than a decade. Full-time employment jumped by 17,800 and part-time employment was up by 53,700,
said the Bureau of Statistics. There was also a rise in the total workforce, which comprises those in work plus those looking for it. The
unemployment rate remained at 5.4%. Analysts said the data was a sign that economic conditions were improving. (BBC)
USA

Jobless Claims Slip While Producers Paying More. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits dropped
for a third straight week last week, the latest indication the labor market recovery was gaining traction. Other data on Thursday
showed a spike in the cost of gasoline pushed up producer prices last month, but the lack of broad price pressures gives the Federal
Reserve scope to maintain its very accommodative monetary policy stance even as the job market strengthens. Initial claims for
state unemployment benefits dropped 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 332,000, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by
Reuters had expected first-time applications for jobless aid to rise to 350,000. In a second report, the Labor Department said its
seasonally adjusted Producer Price Index increased 0.7 % last month after advancing 0.2 % in January. (Reuters)

Consumer Comfort In U.S. Improves To Highest Level Since April. Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed for a sixth straight
week to the highest level since April as a rally in stock prices and improving job market boosted Americans’ view of their finances.
The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index advanced to minus 31.6 in the week ended March 10 from minus 32.4 in the prior period.
The gauge of personal finances reached an eight-month high. (Bloomberg)

Business Spending Rises As U.S. Profits Grow. The outlook for U.S. business spending is improving as rising earnings, easier credit
and pent-up demand prompt companies from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. to Chrysler Group LLC and Lowe’s Cos.
(LOW) to expand. Orders for non-military capital goods excluding aircraft, considered a proxy for future business spending on
equipment and software, climbed 7.2 % in January from the prior month, the biggest gain since September 2004, revised data from
the Commerce Department showed today. They’re up 9.8 % since November, the most for a three-month period since 1993.
(Bloomberg)

President Obama In Third Day Of Budget Talks With Lawmakers. President Barack Obama has made his third and final trip to
Capitol Hill this week in a rare outreach to strike a grand bargain on taxes and spending. The Democratic president met Senate Republicans and House Democrats. But so far Republicans refuse to budge on his call to close tax loopholes, even though he has
shown willingness to cut entitlement programmes. The US economy already faces $85bn in domestic and military cuts because of
the political warfare. Meanwhile, a government shutdown looms by the end of March - the latest in a series of cyclical budget
battles that have crippled the bitterly divided US Congress. (BBC)

euro’s debut in 1999, the commission forecasts. It sees bloc-wide unemployment at 12.2 % in 2013, with
joblessness as high as 27 % in Greece and 26.9% in Spain. (Bloomberg)
Currencies

Dollar Steps Back From Claims-Data Gains. The U.S. dollar slipped Thursday, pulling back from earlier gains that followed data
showing weekly jobless claims fell to the second lowest level in five years. The ICE dollar index, which measures the greenback
against a basket of six other currencies, settled around 82.605, down from 82.936 in late North American trading on Wednesday. On
Thursday, the dollar trading at ¥96.10 compared with ¥96.17, while the British pound reached $1.5081, up from $1.4919. The
euro turned slightly higher, trading at $1.3003 from $1.2955 in the previous session, when it reached a three-month low. The
Australian dollar surged to $1.0380 from $1.0289 late Wednesday after data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed
Australia’s jobless rate remained steady at 5.4% in February. Economists had expected a rise to 5.5%. (Market Watch)
Commodities

Brent Crude Falls On Rising Inventories, Strong Dollar. Brent crude fell on Wednesday on a larger-than-expected increase in U.S.
crude inventories, a firming dollar, and a forecast from the International Energy Agency that oil demand will shrink. Brent fell $1.13 a
barrel to settle at $108.52, below its 200-day moving average of $109.37, a technical support level monitored by traders. U.S.
crude futures fell 2 cents to settle at $92.52 a barrel. (Reuters)

Gold Rise Limited By Wall St Rally, Economic Hope. Gold edged up on Thursday, paring earlier gains, as a 10-day rally in U.S. equities
benchmark the Dow Jones industrial average and data showing an improving U.S. labor market recovery dented safe-haven buying.
Spot gold was up 0.1 % to $1,588.46 an ounce by 4:03 (2003 GMT). Among other precious metals, spot silver was down 0.4% to
$28.76 an ounce. Platinum fell 0.2 % to $1,585.25, and palladium dropped 0.5 % to $767.06. (Reuters)

1155 MAYBANK

look so so... a bit toppish tho

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Maybank targets debit card billings to hit RM6b
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Bernama
Friday, 15 March 2013 09:33


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KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYAN BANKING BHD [] (Maybank) expects debit card billings to rise by at least 34% this year to RM6 billion, spurred by new products such as the Maybankard Visa Superman Debit card, increasing promotions and rising customer awareness.

In a statement yesterday, its deputy president and head of community financial services Datuk Lim Hong Tat said the bank was a clear leader in the debit card business in Malaysia with over 8.6 million debit cards issued.

“This is rising by over 200,000 cards per month. Billings through our debit cards have been growing at a robust average rate of over 30% in the last few years.
“In 2012 alone, this stood at RM4.5 billion.”

Lim said debit payments did not only offer a convenience to cardholders but also to merchants — by providing them with cost savings, improved efficiency and better security by reducing cash handling.

He said Maybank aims to issue 150,000 Maybankard Visa Superman Debit cards within two months to consolidate its leadership in the domestic debit card market.
“The card is targeted mainly at fans of Superman as well as teenagers and young adults.

“It facilitates payments online, which is an important option for the targeted market segment given its increasing practice of making purchases via the Internet, as well as other numerous benefits and discounts,” he said.

Visa Malaysia country manager Stuart Tomlinson said the company saw strong debit card growth in Malaysia as more banks promoted the advantages of debit cards and the benefits it offered.

“Debit cards are now the immediate choice for many card users and consumers are now comfortable with using a debit card for all payments.

“We are seeing untapped segments such as students and young adults switching from cash to electronic payment,” he said. — Bernama

index turn green har

YTLP MBB IOI lead the index

Tebrau roar again !

Mid-morning Market KLCI remains in the red in lacklustre trade
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Surin Murugiah of theedgemalaysia.com
Friday, 15 March 2013 10:42


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KUALA LUMPUR (March 15): The FBM KLCI remained in negative territory at mid-morning on Friday, weighed by losses at select blue chips.

At 10.30am, the FBM KLCI fell 1.17 points to 1,639.57.

Gainers edged losers by 176 to 163, while 219 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 208.49 million shares valued at RM184.54 million.

Among the top losers at mid-morning were BAT that fell 68 sen to RM59.20, Dan Infra lost 20 sen to RM100.90, Petronas Gas down 12 sen to RM18.50, Petronas Dagangan, MSM Malaysia and KLK lost eight sen each to RM23.12, RM4.91 and RM20.52 respectively, P.I.E down seven sen to RM4.50, while top Glove and KAF fell six sen each to RM5.35 and RM1.68.

Compugates was the most actively traded counter with 44.91 million shares done. The stock was unchanged at 9 sen.

The other actives included Sanichi, Luster, Tebrau Teguh, GPRO, CBSA, MNC, Century Software, Patimas and Puncak Niaga.

The gainers included Shell, Aeon Credit, Apollo, KSL, Dutch Lady, GAB, DKSH, HLFG and Takaful.

Meanwhile, Asian shares shrugged off three days of losses on Friday as global risk sentiment was buoyed by new U.S. data overnight suggesting a steady recovery in the world's largest economy, according to Reuters.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan inched up 0.3 percent after falling in the past three sessions as investors took profits from regional rallies that took some of the national indexes to record peaks or multi-year highs, it said.

wa today all my fellow BC'ers smart go do other thing , just no tcss?

jialat liao..

JF wrote:jialat liao..

u need to monitor real time jor

Global Markets Asian shares rebound on record Dow close, U.S. data
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Reuters
Friday, 15 March 2013 14:52


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TOKYO, March 15: Asian shares rebounded from three days of losses on Friday as new U.S. data suggested a steady recovery in the world's largest economy, bolstering investors' risk appetite while underpinning the dollar against the yen.

European markets were seen pausing after surging to fresh 4-1/2 year peaks on Thursday, with financial spreadbetters predicting London's FTSE 100, Paris's CAC-40 and Frankfurt's DAX to open between a 0.1 percent rise and a 0.2 percent fall.

A 0.1 percent gain in U.S. stock futures pointed to further strength in Wall Street.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average extended its record close on Thursday and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed just a hair below an all-time closing high on a lower-than-expected weekly U.S. jobless claims report.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.4 percent, after falling earlier in the week as investors took profits from regional rallies that took some indexes to record peaks or multi-year highs.

The index was set for a weekly decline of around 0.9 percent, whittling down its gains for the year to date to just under 3 percent.

"Initial glumness at the prospect of potentially no further rate cuts today gave way to a far cheerier mood from investors, which was more in alignment with the mood from offshore markets," said Tim Waterer, senior trader at CMC Markets of Australian shares, which led the gains in the Asian-Pacific region with a 1.8 percent rally.

The Australian dollar, often used as a gauge for investor risk appetite, was at $1.0372, not far from Thursday's five-week high touched after a strong local employment data reduced the chances for a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Hong Kong shares rose 0.5 percent and Shanghai shares soared 1.3 percent, led by banking and railway counters on restructuring of the mainland's vast rail operations.

South Korean shares underperformed with a 0.6 percent drop, as heavyweight Samsung Electronics slipped after the launch of its new smartphone, but losses were limited by a rebound in auto shares, which were buoyed by a weaker won.

YEN, NIKKEI AND ABE

Japan's Nikkei stock average was among the regional outperformers, climbing 1.3 percent to a new 4-1/2-year peak after parliament approved Haruhiko Kuroda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan and his two new deputies.

Markets are expecting the BOJ to take more aggressive easing measures, possibly as soon as its next scheduled policy meeting on April 3-4.

"We see several signs of a little bit of overheating in the Japanese market, but strength in the overseas market serves as a tailwind to Japanese equities," said Hiroichi Nishi, an assistant general manager at SMBC Nikko Securities.

Expectations that the new BOJ leadership will accommodate reflationary policies sought by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as part of his economic revival plan have driven yen selling and share buying for the past four months.

Some market observers say the premiums based on such expectations are now fully priced in to the dollar, which may be topping out against the yen, as seen in risk reversals -- or put and call options -- flipping toward bets that the yen will rise.

"As the actual BOJ meeting approaches, some people are getting scared," said Daisuke Karakama, market economist for Mizuho Corporate Bank in Tokyo, adding Kuroda may run out of new policy options in the next three to four meetings and may revert to conventional buying of government bonds.

"Fundamental supply/demand related reasons justified selling the yen down to 90, but the additional 5-6 yen to current levels is purely due to the Abe premiums. Now, it's a tug-of-war with the Japan-specific yen selling and the dollar buying based on the strength of the U.S. economy," Karakama said.

The dollar was trading at 96.16 yen, nearing Tuesday's high of 96.71 yen, its peak since August 2009.

ENCOURAGING U.S. DATA

U.S. data showing a lack of broad price pressures on Thursday left scope for the U.S. Federal Reserve to keep in place the very accommodative monetary policy that has helped support asset prices around the world.

The dollar index eased to 82.536 but stayed close to its seven-month high of 83.166 touched on Thursday.

"With the U.S. dollar converting from a funding towards an asset currency, we would expect bullish emerging markets trades to be funded in low-cost, fundamentally weak G-10 currencies" such as the yen, the euro and sterling, Morgan Stanley said in a research note.

Crude oil was up 0.2 percent to $93.25 a barrel while Brent rose 0.5 percent to $109.46.

"The numbers we are seeing in the United States are a result of the cheap money that has been available," said Jonathan Barratt, chief executive of Sydney-based commodity research firm Barratt's Bulletin.

London copper gained 0.4 percent to $7,829 a tonne and was set to close higher for a second straight week after the latest sign of a recovery in the global economy, but muted buying from top consumer China curbed upside momentum.

TOKYO, March 15 (Reuters) - Asian shares rebounded from three days of losses on Friday as new U.S. data suggested a steady recovery in the world's largest economy, bolstering investors' risk appetite while underpinning the dollar against the yen.

European markets were seen pausing after surging to fresh 4-1/2 year peaks on Thursday, with financial spreadbetters predicting London's FTSE 100, Paris's CAC-40 and Frankfurt's DAX to open between a 0.1 percent rise and a 0.2 percent fall.

A 0.1 percent gain in U.S. stock futures pointed to further strength in Wall Street.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average extended its record close on Thursday and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed just a hair below an all-time closing high on a lower-than-expected weekly U.S. jobless claims report.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.4 percent, after falling earlier in the week as investors took profits from regional rallies that took some indexes to record peaks or multi-year highs.

The index was set for a weekly decline of around 0.9 percent, whittling down its gains for the year to date to just under 3 percent.

"Initial glumness at the prospect of potentially no further rate cuts today gave way to a far cheerier mood from investors, which was more in alignment with the mood from offshore markets," said Tim Waterer, senior trader at CMC Markets of Australian shares, which led the gains in the Asian-Pacific region with a 1.8 percent rally.

The Australian dollar, often used as a gauge for investor risk appetite, was at $1.0372, not far from Thursday's five-week high touched after a strong local employment data reduced the chances for a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Hong Kong shares rose 0.5 percent and Shanghai shares soared 1.3 percent, led by banking and railway counters on restructuring of the mainland's vast rail operations.

South Korean shares underperformed with a 0.6 percent drop, as heavyweight Samsung Electronics slipped after the launch of its new smartphone, but losses were limited by a rebound in auto shares, which were buoyed by a weaker won.

YEN, NIKKEI AND ABE

Japan's Nikkei stock average was among the regional outperformers, climbing 1.3 percent to a new 4-1/2-year peak after parliament approved Haruhiko Kuroda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan and his two new deputies.

Markets are expecting the BOJ to take more aggressive easing measures, possibly as soon as its next scheduled policy meeting on April 3-4.

"We see several signs of a little bit of overheating in the Japanese market, but strength in the overseas market serves as a tailwind to Japanese equities," said Hiroichi Nishi, an assistant general manager at SMBC Nikko Securities.

Expectations that the new BOJ leadership will accommodate reflationary policies sought by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as part of his economic revival plan have driven yen selling and share buying for the past four months.

Some market observers say the premiums based on such expectations are now fully priced in to the dollar, which may be topping out against the yen, as seen in risk reversals -- or put and call options -- flipping toward bets that the yen will rise.

"As the actual BOJ meeting approaches, some people are getting scared," said Daisuke Karakama, market economist for Mizuho Corporate Bank in Tokyo, adding Kuroda may run out of new policy options in the next three to four meetings and may revert to conventional buying of government bonds.

"Fundamental supply/demand related reasons justified selling the yen down to 90, but the additional 5-6 yen to current levels is purely due to the Abe premiums. Now, it's a tug-of-war with the Japan-specific yen selling and the dollar buying based on the strength of the U.S. economy," Karakama said.

The dollar was trading at 96.16 yen, nearing Tuesday's high of 96.71 yen, its peak since August 2009.

ENCOURAGING U.S. DATA

U.S. data showing a lack of broad price pressures on Thursday left scope for the U.S. Federal Reserve to keep in place the very accommodative monetary policy that has helped support asset prices around the world.

The dollar index eased to 82.536 but stayed close to its seven-month high of 83.166 touched on Thursday.

"With the U.S. dollar converting from a funding towards an asset currency, we would expect bullish emerging markets trades to be funded in low-cost, fundamentally weak G-10 currencies" such as the yen, the euro and sterling, Morgan Stanley said in a research note.

Crude oil was up 0.2 percent to $93.25 a barrel while Brent rose 0.5 percent to $109.46.

"The numbers we are seeing in the United States are a result of the cheap money that has been available," said Jonathan Barratt, chief executive of Sydney-based commodity research firm Barratt's Bulletin.

London copper gained 0.4 percent to $7,829 a tonne and was set to close higher for a second straight week after the latest sign of a recovery in the global economy, but muted buying from top consumer China curbed upside momentum. -- Reuters

close of session

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top winner vs loser
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warrant
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