Morning traders.Market wrap: Modest overnight gains for European...

Morning traders.

Market wrap: Modest overnight gains for European equities and key commodities point to a mildly positive start to Australian trade this morning.

With Wall Street closed for the Martin Luther King Jr public holiday, local traders have to look elsewhere for a lead. The local March SPI 200 futures contract last traded at midnight and was five points stronger at 4887.

Gains for mining stocks led European markets higher overnight. The UK's FTSE 100 index climbed 0.7%, the German DAX index 0.7% and the French CAC-40 index 0.6%, buoyed by advances for base metals on the London Metal Exchange and easing concerns over the upcoming reporting season.

The bounce in Europe soothed the bearish mood in which Wall Street ended last week, driving Dow futures up 30 points to 10,593.

Oil bounced off a three-week low after Qatar's oil minister said OPEC was unlikely to raise its output this year. Crude oil futures recently rallied to trade 0.32% higher at $78.25 a barrel. The minister told reporters that the oil market is "very well-supplied".

Gold futures have tracked sideways since Friday. The spot price was recently trading $2.70 higher at $1,132.70 an ounce.

A surprise drop in London Metal Exchange warehouse inventories helped copper advance. Stocks of copper fell for the first time since late October, but remained around 11-month highs. Copper for three-month delivery rallied 1%, lead 0.8% and nickel 1.2%. Zinc was flat, while aluminium slipped 0.3% and tin lost 0.7%,

TRADING THEMES TODAY

IRON ORE: New figures show iron ore exports are back near record highs after strong buying from China. Shipments of ore hit 32.8 million tonnes, according to ABS figures supplied to UBS. The new data should support BHP and FMG ahead of their production reports, due tomorrow. Read more here: http://www.smh.com.au/business/chinas-appetite-for-ore-soars-20100118-mgra.html

ECONOMIC NEWS: Local imports data are due at 11.30 am. The U.S. eases back to life tonight with the housing market index and net foreign purchases of long-term securities.

Good luck to all.