In electronic trading on Monday, stock futures rose, with futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 36 points and S&P 500 futures up 5.4 points. The FTSE 100 rose 1.7% in London to lead European stock markets higher in afternoon trading. Asian markets were mixed, with the Hang Seng down 1.3% while the Nikkei 225 edged up 0.1%. Housing sector reports Fresh off the central bank's downgrade of the U.S. economy, investors will return from the holiday to reports from the beleaguered housing sector and results from J.C. Penney Co. (JCP) and tech heavyweight Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) A three-day snapback rally, interrupted by a sell-off on Thursday, was enough to pull the major stock indexes higher last week, but it wasn't enough to convince Joe Liro, equity strategist at Stone & McCarthy Research Associates, that the market is ready to extend gains.

Stocks Advance, Led by Techs

Stocks closed higher Wednesday after reversing an earlier drop. Technology issues were among the session's best performers, aided by a strong earnings report from Hewlett-Packard (HPQ). Financial stocks rose later in the day, as minutes from Federal Reserve January policy meetings apparently supported hopes for further interest rate cuts. Stocks tied to precious metals and oil got a lift from gains in commodities futures, as crude oil topped the $100 mark once again to close at a new record.

On Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average finished higher by 90.04 points, or 0.73%, at 12,427.26. The broader S&P 500 index added 11.25 points, or 0.83%, to end at 1,360.03.

Major grain merchandiser does away with HTAs

DTN Markets Blogger Pat Hill reports Thursday that the Andersons will no longer write hedge-to-arrive contracts for grain for delivery after August of 2008.

Hedge-to-arrive contracts are forward contracts that don't set the basis until a later date. When basis is wide, that's often a good deal for ag producers. But given the increasingly speculative nature of futures markets, it's become harder and harder for grain merchandisers to hedge that basis risk.

According to the DTN story, there aren't any other major grain firms that have sworn off on hedge-to-arrive contracts yet. But some have reportedly increased fees for those contracts.


Related Links:
DTN Market Matters Blog

See other items about...
(choose a keyword...) Grains/Oilseeds Risk Management Transportation .

Brown feels heat as Libdems and Tories seek answer to West Lothian ...

Devloution, as some said at the time, is inherently unstable.

Globex: Upping the Ante in the Electronic Trading Wars

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange's Globex electronic exchange recorded 1.33 billion deals last year, generating roughly $825 million in revenue, according to corporate statements. CME Group earns additional revenue by licensing use of Globex to the New York Mercantile Exchange and the Korea Exchange, an arrangement that likely will include the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

Right to save Afflecks?

AFFLECKS Palace was good to David Mallon. It gave the streetwear supremo, from Stretford, an affordable base to start his career in fashion, selling rock band T-shirts. Like many who set out their stalls in Afflecks in the late 1980s early 1990s, Mallon, the man behind trendy fashion labels Ringspun and Elvis Jesus, reflects fondly on the time when it was synonymous with all that was cool about Manchester. "Those were the halcyon days. That was the time when Manchester was at its most influential thanks to the Hacienda and the music scene. You had a huge influx of people visiting from all over the country because they'd heard Manchester was the place to be and Afflecks was a symbol of that moment." But now as he looks across at the eclectic shopping emporium from his offices in Oldham Street he sees something faded, ramshackle, increasingly irrelevant.

A Bullish Call

IN 2007, WORRIED INVESTORS LUNGED for the safety of bonds. Treasuries may hold less appeal next year, the Street's leading strategists say. Many of those we surveyed see the yield on 10-year Treasuries, now near a three-year low of 4%, increasing in 2008, albeit at a genteel pace that won't spook the market.