Stock Market Update - Wednesday, October 13, 2010 Cautious Upward Trend Gold Rising

Stock Market Update
Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Latest US Economic News Headlines:

USA EQUITY INDEXES: (OCT. 13, 4:00 PM EDT)
Dow Jones 11,096.08 +75.68 (0.69%)
S&P 500    1,178.10 +8.33  (0.71%)
Nasdaq     2,441.23 +23.31 (0.96%)

Dow Jones 1:00 PM Averages: DJIA 11,140.74 UP 120.34
  30 INDUS     11,140.74 UP  120.34 OR    1.09%
  20 TRANSP     4,735.94 UP  124.54 OR    2.70%
  15 UTILS        405.72 UP    2.74 OR    0.68%
  65 STOCKS     3,864.61 UP   56.89 OR    1.49%

US DOLLAR FUTURES INDEX DXY: 4:00 PM EDT: 77.08   0.27 (0.35%)

US COMMODITY PRICES: (OCT. 13, 4:00 PM EDT) 
Crude Oil     82.96     - 0.06%
Natural Gas     3.68     - 0.49%
Gasoline     2.16     - 0.40%
Heating Oil     2.30     -
Gold     1371.70     + 1.59%
Silver     23.98     + 2.87%
Copper     3.81     + 0.87%



US STOCKS AND COMMODITIES RALLY - AS DOLLAR FALLS

U.S. stocks surged Wednesday, led by industrial and material stocks as commodity prices soared amid a big gain in Chinese imports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 85 points, or 0.8%, to trade at 11106 recently. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index gained eight points to 1179, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 20 points to 2438.

U.S. stocks opened with a strong gain, led by industrial and material stocks as Chinese commodity imports rallied.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 75 points, or 0.69%, to trade at 11096 at today's close. Stocks and commodities were boosted today by both; strong earnings reports and a falling US dollar.. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index gained eight points to close at 1178, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 23 points to close at 2441.

Investors added to a three-day winning streak, buoyed by better-than-expected earnings from blue-chips Intel and J.P. Morgan Chase. Both companies topped earnings expectations, but saw their shares muddle along in early trading.

J.P. Morgan added 0.1% after opening lower, while Intel slipped 0.1%. J.P. Morgan's tepid opening came despite seeing its third-quarter profit rise 23% to $4.42 billion, or $1.01 a share, comfortably beating consensus expectations of earnings of 90 cents a share.


PRECIOUS METALS RALLY - DOLLAR DROPS
Gold Futures Breach $1,370 As Dollar Weakens

Gold:   $1,371.57  + 1.58%
Silver:        $23.77 + 1.97%

Gold futures extended record highs above $1,370 as investors continued buy the metal to hedge a falling dollar and the threat of inflation they see from anticipated monetary easing.

The most actively traded gold contract, for December delivery, was recently up $26.50, or 2%, at $1,373.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It reached $1,374.80, the strongest ever intraday price for a most-active contract.

Wednesday's record is the latest in a string of all-time highs as the dollar has weakened ahead of widely anticipated monetary easing by the Federal Reserve. Expectations of this so-called quantitative easing, which could include the purchase of Treasurys, have been a strong support of gold because the metal is considered a currency and inflation hedge.

The metal has also been gaining in popularity as other countries also move to ease their own monetary policies in an effort to stimulate their economies.

"Gold and silver continue to remain robust given the real concerns about the U.S., euro zone and global economies," according to a note to clients from Dublin-based bullion dealer GoldCore. "These concerns are creating doubt about the outlook for the dollar, the euro and other fiat currencies due to competitive currency devaluations and currency debasement."

The dollar being on the defensive Wednesday is also benefiting prices for dollar-denominated gold by making the metal less expensive for buyers using other currencies, helping demand. The ICE Futures U.S. Dollar Index was recently down 0.3%.

Gold got a jump-start Wednesday after minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's September meeting--released Tuesday afternoon after the U.S. gold market was closed--showed officials' discussions focused on buying more U.S. Treasurys or new strategies for inflation if prices remained too low and unemployment too high.

CRUDE OIL FUTURES CLOSE OVER $83
US crude oil futures closed up in trading Wednesday above $83 per barrel at $83.04 before inventory numbers scheduled for Thursday..

OIL INVENTORIES SEEN RISING IN WEEK
U.S. crude oil inventories are expected to rise by 1.2 million barrels in data due Thursday from the Department of Energy, according to a Dow Jones Newswires survey of analysts.


EPA APPROVES INCREASE OF ETHANOL IN FUEL TO 15%
U.S. agency approves a controversial increase of ethanol levels in gasoline for model-year 2007 cars and newer, allowing ethanol to make up 15% of fuel blends, up from the current 10%, for those vehicles.


GLOBAL OIL USE UP 110K BARRELS A DAY
The Energy Information Administration puts world oil demand averaging 86.06 million barrels a day this year, up 2.1% from a year ago,  while modestly lifting forecasts for the U.S. and China, the world's top oil consumers.


BEFORE THE BELL:

US DOLLAR DROPS - US STOCK FUTURES RISE
US Stock-Index Futures Advance; Intel, JPMorgan, CSX Climb on Earnings

US stock-index futures rose, indicating the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 Index will extend a five-month high, as sales forecast by Intel Corp.

JPMorgan Chase kicked off what is expected to be a mixed quarterly earnings season for big banks on Wednesday with a 23 percent. J.P. Morgan added 0.1% after opening lower, while Intel slipped 0.1%. J.P. Morgan's tepid opening came despite seeing its third-quarter profit rise 23% to $4.42 billion, or $1.01 a share, comfortably beating consensus expectations of earnings of 90 cents a share.

Intel's slight decline came despite announcing late Tuesday a better-than-expected 59% jump in third-quarter profit, citing "solid demand" from corporate customers.

The day's gains were led by industrial and material stocks after China's trade surplus fell to a five-month low of $16.88 billion during the single month of September, as commodity imports staged an unexpected rebound. Oil imports, for instance, hit a monthly record in volume terms.

Alcoa gained 1.3% while Caterpillar added 1.7%.

Shares in railroad operator CSX jumped 4.6% after reporting a better-than-expected 43% rise in third-quarter profits on volume gains. CSX, the first of the major U.S. railroads to report and traditionally a trend setter, said freight shipments rose 10% from the year-ago period.

Host Hotels & Resorts edged up 0.1% after reporting a loss of 9 cents a share, matching the year-ago figure and slightly beating the 11-cents-a-share loss expected by analysts.

Other companies that will be in focus Wednesday include Chevron, which warned late Tuesday that it expects third-quarter earnings to come in below its second-quarter results due to a combination of a weaker dollar, rising costs and lower crude-oil prices. Chevron was down 0.4%.

Oil players in general were generally strong, however, after the Obama administration lifted its controversial moratorium on deep-water oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, though it could take weeks for companies to win regulatory approval to go back to work there. Exxon Mobil added 0.3% and Peabody Energy gained 1.9%.

Apple gained 1%, pushing its share price above the $300 mark for the first time.


US IMPORT PRICES FELL - EXCLUDING OIL 
U.S. import prices fell more than expected in September, as declining fuel costs more than offset an increase in food prices, and the overall price of goods imported into the U.S. dropped 0.3% last month.

  The decline follows an unrevised 0.6% rise in August, and was steeper than an expected decrease of 0.1%. Even so, the 0.3% decline may not be steep enough to ignite fears of deflation, which were likely tempered by last month's increase. The import price number is unlikely to change investors' expectations that the Federal Reserve will act to boost the economy.


COMMODITIES RISE ON WEAKER DOLLAR - OIL UP
Oil rises over $82 on strong China crude imports

Asia pushed the price of gold up forcefully overnight taking it to $1,358 on Globex before it fixed in London at $1,358.50 this morning. Oil rose above $82.64 on Wednesday after China's crude imports jumped last month. Copper rose .0.74% to trade at $3.81, Gold  $1361.25, Silver $23.54.

The dollar pared earlier losses after the import price data, but was still off on the day, sinking against the euro, which briefly touched the $1.40 mark and traded recently at $1.3931, up from $1.3916 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar traded flat against the yen at 81.77 yen to the dollar.

Gold resumed its push higher, hitting a six-day high, while oil rose to $83.47 a barrel, after China imported record levels of oil in September and the dollar weakened.
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Canadian Market:

CANADIAN CURRENCY RALLY'S - MARKETS RALLY - US DOLLAR DOWN
TSX Venture Exchange opened on Wednesday at 1,822.56 up 19.22 points 

The TSX Venture Exchange stood at 1,822.56 up 19.22 points from Tuesday’s close. The volume at 10 a.m. ET was at 73.1 million shares.

The Toronto stock market is higher at midday Wednesday, extending the rally sparked Tuesday by the Federal Reserve's comments it would move to buoy the money supply.

At 11:45 a.m. EDT (1545 GMT), the S&P/TSX Composite Index was up 107.20 points, or 0.85%, at 12682.84. Advancers easily outweighed decliners 982 to 409. Trading volume was 269.9 million shares. The S&P/TSX 60 Index was up 5.70 points, or 0.8%, to 732.94 points.


Canada's Dollar Rises to Near Parity with U.S. Dollar

The Canadian dollar is trading just below parity with the U.S. dollar. The loonie was worth more than 99.6 cents US at mid-morning, up about two-thirds of a cent from its closing value on Tuesday. The last time Canada's dollar was worth more than one U.S. dollar was in April. The loonie has been supported recently by American dollar weakness and higher prices for commodities that Canada exports.


Canada C$3B Of 1.50% 2012 Bonds Yield Average 1.419%

The Canadian Finance Department reported an average yield of 1.419% at an auction of C$3 billion (US$2.97 billion) of 1.50% non-callable government bonds due Dec. 1, 2012.

The high accepted yield was 1.422% for a price equivalent of 100.163 and the low accepted yield was 1.413% for a price equivalent of 100.182. The price equivalent for the average yield was 100.169.


Toronto Indexes, Volume; 1 PM EDT Composite Up 119.48
 S&P/TSX Composite   12695.12  up  119.48  or 1.0%
 S&P/TSX 60 Index      733.33  up    6.09  or 0.8%
 Financials            179.43  up    1.31  or 0.7%
 Materials             407.59  up    7.30  or 1.8%
 Energy                295.19  up    2.24  or 0.8%
 Industrials           107.73  up    1.90  or 1.8%
 IT                     28.47  up    0.37  or 1.3%

   Volume           Wednesday    Tuesday
   12-1                79.3M       35.0M
   9:30-1             364.8M      225.9M

Toronto Most Actives At 12:15 PM EDT
Eastern Platinum Ltd.             26,374,366   1.57  up   0.05
Kinross Gold                       9,050,691  19.70  up   0.55
Horizons NYMEX Natural Gas Bull    8,299,295   3.33  up   0.09
Alexis Minerals                    4,008,487   0.27  up   0.03
Mercator Minerals                  3,910,137   2.97  up   0.18
Barrick Gold Corp.                 3,726,834  49.50  up   0.53
Gold Wheaton Gold                  3,253,167   3.28  up   0.07
Manulife Financial                 3,205,466  12.47  up   0.04
Great Basin Gold                   3,161,527   2.89  up   0.17
Yamana Gold                        2,958,468  11.82  up   0.19
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South American Markets:

BRAZIL:

BRAZIL STOCKS AND COMMODITIES RALLY
Brazil Stocks Advance Early Tracking Trends Abroad

Brazil's Bovespa stock index advanced in early trading Wednesday as investors took cues from advancing markets and favorable signals abroad to buy local shares.

The main Sao Paulo stocks index advanced 0.8% to 71,488 points after ending at 70,946 points in the previous session.

Traders noted investors returned from a local holiday showing special enthusiasm over signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve Tuesday that it will increase liquidity in an effort to stimulate the U.S. economy.

Brazil's FIPE economic research institute Wednesday reported its IPCA consumer price index rose 0.76% in the first week of October, above median forecasts of around 0.65%.

Some analysts have suggested Brazil's central bank could resume a recently suspended interest rate tightening cycle at the beginning of 2011 if local inflation continues to accelerate.

Brazil's central bank opted to hold the country's reference Selic interest rate at unchanged 10.75% annually in September after two percentage points of rate hikes earlier in the year.

In early trading Wednesday, materials sector shares were among advancers, with mining giant Vale (VALE, VALE5.BR) gaining 0.7% to 47.74 Brazilian reals ($28.93) and steelmaker Usiminas (USIM5.BR) up 0.6% to BRL21.27.

Private bank Banco Itau (ITUB, ITUB4.BR) was up 0.3% to BRL42.30, and rival Bradesco bank (BBD, BBDC4.BR) was 0.7% higher at BRL35.72.

Shares of state-controlled oil company Petrobras (PBR, PETR4.BR) advanced 0.3% to BRL25.93. Shares of leading fixed-line telecom operator Oi (TNE) were unchanged at BRL24.90 and leading airline Gol (GOLL4.BR) rose 2.4% to BRL29.13.


CHILE:

Chile Stocks Climb - Peso Ends Weaker
Chile Stocks Close 2.7% Higher

The Ipsa finished 2.7% higher at 4794.11, while market volume grew to 126.0 billion Chilean pesos ($263.7 million), compared with volume of CLP78.1 billion the previous session.

The peso finished at CLP477.70 to the dollar versus Tuesday's close of CLP475.40, after trading in a range of CLP474.15 to CLP479.10.

Chile's peso ended weaker against the dollar Wednesday, coming down from a 29-month high closing the previous session, as the market awaits the central bank's monetary policy meeting later this week.
Base metals mining company Southern Copper Corp. (SCCO) was up 4.79% at $40.50 as red metal prices rose.

Precious metals miner Compania de Minas Buenaventura SAA (BVN) was up 2.42% at $50.59, as gold prices gained. Financial holding company Credicorp Ltd. (BAP) was also up, by 3.72% to $125.50.

The peso finished at CLP477.70 to the dollar versus Tuesday's close of CLP475.40, after trading in a range of CLP474.15 to CLP479.10.

Chile's economy is highly dependent on its exports. The export of copper, fishmeal, wood pulp, molybdenum, nitrates and fertilizers, fresh fruit and wine represent over 50% of the country's gross domestic product. As a result, a stronger peso cut into the exporting sector's competitiveness abroad.

In the bond market, yields on inflation-indexed Chilean central bank bonds, or BCUs, ended higher, also amid expectations regarding the central bank's monetary policy decision Thursday.

The yield on five-year BCU bonds ended at 2.78% compared with 2.77% on Tuesday, while the yield on 10-year BCUs closed higher, at 3.16% from 3.14% the previous session.


Chile Mining Minister Confident Rescue To End Wednesday Night
As the massive rescue in Chile passed the halfway mark with 17 of the 33 trapped miners back on the surface, Mining Minister Laurence Golborne remained confident the operation could end late Wednesday night.

After the 17th miner, Omar Reygadas, returned to the surface from his 69-day ordeal in the depths of the earth, the rescue pod halted its trips for maintenance, Golborne said. The miners, 32 Chileans and one Bolivian, were trapped in an Aug. 5 cave-in at the San Jose copper and gold mine in northern Chile.

Since the operation--called "Operation Saint Lawrence" after the patron saint of miners in the Catholic religion--began late Tuesday, five rescue workers have descended to where the miners were trapped.

One last rescue worker will likely go down shortly, to allow his colleagues to rest, Golborne told reporters in a televised press conference from the mine. He noted that in general the trapped miners were in much better health than officials had expected.

"As to health issues, the results have been optimal," Golborne said. The minister confirmed Tuesday night reports that the door of the rescue pod, dubbed "Phoenix," had been damaged in the initial test runs which delayed the rescue startup. "There was a glitch with the door, which makes closing the capsule less than fluid," he said.

Earlier in the day, President Sebastian Pinera said the rescue operation was bringing workers back to the surface at the rate of three miners every two hours.

Mining Minister Golborne added that once the last of the 33 miners returned to the surface, the six rescue workers would make their way back up. "The last rescue worker to go down will obviously be the last one to come back up," he said.


PERU:

Peru's main stock market indexes rose in early trade Wednesday as shares gained in line with international markets and higher metals prices.

The Lima Stock Exchange's broad General index was up 1.91% at 19359.58, while the Selective blue-chip index was 2.05% higher at 28131.48. The key mining sub-index was up 1.93%.



VENEZUELA:

VENEZUELA OIL RESERVES GROW
Venezuela Oil Minister: Reserves To Reach 316 Billion Barrels Next Year

Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said Wednesday he expects the country's oil reserves to jump to 316 billion barrels next year.

Coming along recent new bookings from Iraq and Iran, the upgrade would take Venezuela ahead of Saudi Arabia's proven reserves of 260 billion barrels.

But analysts have questioned how economic any new Venezuelan reserves could be, as most would come from the heavy and extra-heavy oil in the Orinoco Belt, which is difficult and expensive to extract.

Venezuelan reserves jumped 23% in late 2009 to 211.173 billion barrels, according to government figures, making Venezuela the country with the second-largest crude reserves in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.


Venezuelan Government Sets 2011 Budget At VEF204.2 Billion

The Venezuelan government set a 204.2 billion-bolivar budget for next year and will present the spending plan to the National Assembly on Thursday, Vice President Elias Jaua said Wednesday.

The budget represents a 27% increase in bolivar terms from last year. The government's proposed debt law allows for debt sales, including local and foreign, for 54 billion bolivars, Jaua said.

The government devalued the bolivar earlier this year, making the calculation of government spending plans in dollar terms subject to interpretation.

The government's official, fixed rate of VEF4.3 for $1 is supposed to be the rate given to importers of most goods, while another rate of VEF2.6 was set up for importers of essentials such as medicine. But getting either of those rates requires government approval that is hard, if not impossible, for many importers to obtain.

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European Markets:
The Stoxx Europe 600 index closed around 1.4% higher at 266.22. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed up 1.5% at 5747.35. Germany's DAX added 2.0% to 6434.52 and France's CAC-40 closed 2.1% higher at 3828.34.

In Europe, the upbeat mood was further supported by euro-zone industrial production increasing by 1.0% in August. The outcome would have been stronger were it not for a stunning 13.6% drop in Irish production. By the European close, the euro was at $1.3971, up from $1.3916 late Tuesday


LONDON:
European shares touched a three-week high on Wednesday, after the minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve suggested it was closer to introducing fresh stimuli to the economy.

Technology shares featured among the top performers after Intel (INTC.O), the world's largest chipmaker, forecast strong fourth-quarter sales and margins.

Profit beating results from Dutch chip-equipment maker ASML (ASML.AS), which has Intel as one of its biggest customers also buoyed sentiment in the sector. ASML rose 2.5 percent, while semiconductor peers ARM Holdings (ARM.L), Infineon and STMicroelectronics (STM.PA) gained 1.7 to 3.4 percent.

Oil major BP PLC gained 1.8%, boosted in part by the rise in oil prices. Banks posted broad gains, Standard Chartered PLC stood out among decliners, falling 1.7% on news it will raise around GBP3.26 billion ($5.1 billion) in a rights issue priced at a 33% discount to its Oct. 12 closing price.

By 0853 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was 1 percent higher at 1,082.26 points after being up as much as 1,083.23 - its highest level in three weeks.

The Euro STOXX 50 the euro zone's blue-chip index, rose 1.5 percent to 2,816.63 points, jumping above the 61.8 percent Fibonacci retracement level of the index's fall from an April high to a May low at 2,805.95 points after being below it for the previous three sessions.

GERMANY:
Germany's DAX .GDAXI was up 1.4 percent

GERMANY WARNS OF TRADE WAR
Germany increased pressure on China to bring its currency more in line with market value, warning that a trade war could result from competing efforts to keep currencies low.

Volkswagen, Porsche Merger May Be Delayed
The planned merger between Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE) and Porsche Automobil Holding SE (PAH3.XE) could be delayed until complex legal issues and tax liabilities have been resolved, according to analysts. Porsche will hold its annual earnings conference Oct. 19 and investors are eager to hear more about the prospects of the deal.
 

FRANCE:
France's CAC 40 .FCHI rose 1.5 percent.

FRENCH STRIKE - DAY TWO
French protests against President Nicolas Sarkozy's plans to increase the retirement age reached a turning point as unions tried to orchestrate crippling strikes-with mixed results.

ITALY:
Italy's public debt hit a new record in August, triggering claims that Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti's fiscal policy is failing the country's needs.

Italian government debt rose to EUR1.843 trillion in August, up 4.5% or EUR80 billion from a year earlier, according to data published Wednesday by the Bank of Italy.



Italy's Finance Minister Criticized For Austerity

The minister has proven his skills at austerity "but his inability to think about growth turns him into a budget minister, in which case it would be preferable if the prime minister took direct responsibility for the basic economic policy choices," Italia Futura, a think-tank founded by Ferrari Chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, wrote in an editorial this week that was widely read as a political challenge.

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Asian Pacific Markets: 
All Asian markets rallied  except China on news this morning. Chinese market was dragged down by weaker-than-expected trade data for September. China's trade surplus fell to a five-month low of $16.88 billion for September, as commodity imports staged an unexpected rebound.

China and its Asian neighbors are taking tentative steps to ease tensions after months of escalating turmoil over competing territorial and maritime claims

CHINA:

China Foreign-Exchange Reserves Jump to $2.65 Trillion
China’s foreign-exchange reserves, the world’s largest, surged by a record to $2.65 trillion at the end of September, adding fuel to complaints that the nation’s curbs on gains in the yuan are undermining the global recovery.

Currency holdings rose about $194 billion in the third quarter, today’s statement from the People’s Bank of China showed. September exports were the second-highest on record at $145 billion, a separate customs bureau report showed.

Chinese banks extended a more-than-estimated 595.5 billion yuan ($89 billion) in new local-currency loans last month, the People’s Bank of China said in today’s statement.


JAPAN:

The Japanese market lifted by a surprise rise in machinery orders data. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said today that China and South Korea should “take responsible actions” in relation to their exchange rates. Japan’s intervention in currency markets last month brought criticism from policy makers in Europe and politicians in the U.S.


AUSTRALIA:

Australia's economy stood alone among developed countries in passing through the global financial crisis without a real recession. Since last year, with the economy feeding off a resources boom driven by Chinese demand, the Reserve Bank of Australia has been raising interest rates. At 4.5%, the central bank's cash rate is not far off its long-run normal level.

That Australian rates are rising while others are easing creates some problems, and chief among them is the continuing rise in the Aussie dollar's value. Parity with the U.S. dollar -- not seen since the Aussie dollar floated in 1983, is now tantalizingly close.



WORLD FOREX CURRENCIES SNAPSHOT:
(WEDNESDAY, OCT 13, 2010 4:00 PM)

EUR/USD     1.3963     +0.0045 (0.32%)
USD/JPY     81.7600 -0.0300 (-0.04%)
GBP/USD     1.5891     +0.0081 (0.51%)
CAD/USD     0.9964     +0.0067 (0.68%)
USD/HKD     7.7600     +0.0011 (0.01%)
USD/CNY     6.6634     -0.0099 (-0.15%)
AUD/USD     0.9918     +0.0057 (0.58%)

WORLD MARKETS SNAPSHOT:
(WEDNESDAY, OCT 13, 2010 12:00 NOON AM)

Shanghai     2,861.36     +19.95 (0.70%)
Nikkei 225     9,403.51     +14.87 (0.16%)
Hang Seng Index     23,457.69     +335.99 (1.45%)
TSEC     8,106.66     +16.44 (0.20%)
FTSE 100     5,747.35     +85.76 (1.51%)
DJ EURO STOXX 50     2,839.12     +63.37 (2.28%)
CAC 40     3,828.34     +79.48 (2.12%)
S&P TSX     12,689.59     +113.95 (0.91%)
S&P/ASX 200     4,619.90     +1.70 (0.04%)
BSE Sensex     20,687.88     +484.54 (2.40%)

WEDNESDAY'S US ECONOMIC CALENDAR:

7:00 a.m.
Oct 8 MBA Mortgage Applications Survey Market Composite Index (previous 782.6), Cur Chg (previous -0.2%), Purchase Index (S.A.) (previous 198.7), Cur Chg (previous +9.3%), Refinance Index (previous 4180.8), Cur Chg (previous -2.5%)

8:30 a.m.
Sept. Import & Export Price Indexes Import Prices (expected -0.2%), Non-Petroleum Prices (previous +0.2%), Petroleum Prices (previous +2.1%)

2:00 p.m.
Sept. Treasury Statement of Receipts & Outlays of the U.S. Govt (expected -32B)

4:10 p.m.
Fed Chmn Bernanke speaks on business innovation in Pittsburgh

4:30 p.m.
Oct 8 API Statistical Bulletin Crude Stocks (Net Change) (previous +4.44M), Gasoline Stocks (Net Change) (previous -4.06M), Distillate Stocks (Net Change) (previous -0.78M), Refinery Runs (previous 81.6%)

7:45 p.m.
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker speech

MARKET SUMMARY, TUESDAY, OCT. 12, 2010:

Stocks:
U.S. stocks rose after minutes from the September meeting of the Federal Reserve showed the central bank believed new steps would be needed to jump-start growth, barring surprising improvements in the economy. The minutes appeared to give investors what they were looking for, showing Fed officials' discussions in September focused on buying more U.S. Treasurys or new strategies for inflation if prices remained too low and unemployment too high.

Treasurys:
Treasury prices fell after a lukewarm sale of $32 billion three-year notes and the minutes from the Federal Reserve's September monetary policy meeting. Bond prices also weakened as investors brace for a $21 billion 10-year note sale. Most Fed policy makers believed additional monetary stimulus is needed to jumpstart the economy while warding off a deflation scare, the minutes showed.

Forex:
The euro rallied versus the dollar, erasing earlier losses to hit a series of intraday highs above $1.39 following the release of FOMC minutes. The prospect of a further round of stimulus measures has weighed heavily on the dollar in recent weeks. The yen was also higher against the dollar, although it extended its gains only slightly in the wake of the FOMC minutes.


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