MORNING MARKET REPORT Monday, 2 June 2008  

(Oil is the July contract on the NY Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Gold is the June contract on the COMEX division of the NY Mercantile Exchange, while Silver is the July contract on the COMEX.)

NEW YORK - US stocks ended mixed after the tech-laden Nasdaq was boosted by a strong result from computer maker Dell Inc, helping to offset concerns about rising oil prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 7.90 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 12,638.32 and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 2.12 points to 1,400.38.
The Nasdaq Composite Index added 14.34 points, or 0.57 per cent, at 2,522.66.

LONDON - US stocks fell, led down by energy and financial stocks.
The FTSE 100 dropped 14.6 points to 6,053.5 points

FRANKFURT - The DAX index lifted 41.76 points to 7,096.79

PARIS - The CAC-40 index advanced 38.38 points to 5,014.28

TOKYO - Japanese stocks rose 1.5 percent as a soft yen buoyed exporters like Honda Motor Co.
The benchmark Nikkei average found 214.07 points to 14,338.54

HONG KONG - Stocks rose as energy companies were assisted by speculation the government would allow higher electricity charges and petrol prices to curb excessive energy use.
The Hang Seng Index climbed 149.13 points to 24,533.12 points

WELLINGTON - The benchmark NZSX-50 index firmed 61.1 points to 3624.2.

SYDNEY - The Australian share market is expected to open higher on stronger commodity prices and a mixed lead from Wall Street.
On the Sydney Futures exchange, the June share price index was up 15 points at 5,721.
Today, the Australian Bureau of Statistics releases business indicators data for the March quarter and retail sales data for April.
The Australian Industry Group/PricewaterhouseCoopers Australian Performance of Manufacturing Index for May is also released.
The Australian share market closed weaker on Friday as lower prices for oil and base metals pulled back global miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index lost 54.7 points, or 0.96 per cent, to 5,654.7, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 43.3 points to 5,773.9.

NYMEX
US crude oil futures ended up in volatile trading on Friday as traders covered shorts ahead of the weekend and a weaker dollar spurred fund buying.
Traders also squared books to rope in month-end profits, limiting the day’s bounce from Thursday’s $US4 loss.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, July crude settled up 73 US cents or 0.58 per cent at $US127.35 a barrel, trading from $US124.67 to $US128.30.
But prices are down $US4.84 or 3.66 per cent on the week, dropping for the first time in four weeks.
From the record $US135.09 hit on May 22, prices are down $US10.42 or 7.71 per cent.
In London, July Brent crude ended up 89 US cents or 0.7 per cent at $US127.78 a barrel.
June heating oil finished 2.87 US cents at $US3.6598 a gallon.
July heating oil dipped 3.93 US cents to $US3.6667.
NYMEX June RBOB ended up 0.47 of US cent at $US3.4089 a gallon.

LONDON METALS EXCHANGE
Copper and aluminium prices edged up, reversing some of the previous session’s losses, as worries about supply shortfalls resurfaced, while nickel and tin extended declines.
Copper for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange, often seen as a key gauge of economic activity, ended the day at $US7,935 per tonne, up $US45.
Aluminium closed at $US2,931 per tonne, up from $US2,880. The metal has been boosted this year by worries about power problems and supplies of the energy-intensive metal from China, the world’s biggest producer and consumer.
By contrast, steel-making additive nickel fell 3.8 per cent, closing at $US22,100 per tonne, down $US400, while tin ended the day at $US20,200 a tonne, down $US800.
Zinc gained $US25 to close at $US2,005 and lead rose $US22 to a final quote of $US1,974/1,975.

COMEX
Gold ended more than one per cent higher on Friday after hitting a two-week low, as a weaker dollar, oil gains and sharp declines in bullion prices in past sessions attracted investors and bargain hunters.
Other precious metals largely followed suit, with spot platinum and palladium recovering from three-week lows and silver bouncing back from a four-week trough.
The active US August gold contract on the COMEX division of New York Mercantile Exchange settled up $US9.80, or 1.1 per cent, at $US891.50 an ounce.
At 0700, the spot price of gold was $US885.90, up $US9.00 on Friday’s Sydney close of $US876.90.