daytrades feb 3 pre-market

Morning traders.

Market wrap: A flat start lies ahead after overseas markets took a breather overnight amid heightened tensions in the Middle East.

The March SPI futures contract ended the night session 4 points or 0.08% stronger at 4767 after mixed finishes for US and European stocks and commodity prices.

Wall Street ended the session little changed as the market consolidated yesterday's big rise. The Dow traded in an unusually tight 39-point range, closing 2 points or 0.02% higher. The benchmark S&P 500 fell 0.27% as riots in Cairo revived concerns about unrest in the Middle East. The Nasdaq eased 0.04%.

"You need to be somewhat sceptical at this stage," a senior trader at US Global Investors told Bloomberg. "We've had a very sharp stock rally. It's not surprising that we see the market moving either sideways or lower. There?s concern about geopolitical risks. There's been improvement in both economic data and earnings, however, you'd need to see stronger figures to push stocks higher."

Oil swung higher after violent clashes in Egypt between anti-government protesters and supporters of President Mubarak. Crude has risen more than 5% in the last few days on concerns that civil unrest in Egypt may disrupt oil supply to the west or spill into neighbouring countries. Crude futures were recently up 22 cents or 0.24% for the session at $91 a barrel.

Uncertainty over developments in Cairo offset another solid employment report in the US. A private jobs report showed a 12th straight month of gains, adding 187,000 jobs last month and topping the median prediction in a Bloomberg survey for a rise of 140,000.

Industrial metals were little changed as the start of Chinese Lunar New Year holidays sidelined traders from the world's biggest consumer of raw materials. In London, copper added 0.15%, lead 0.3%, tin 1.3% and zinc 0.1%. Nickel was unchanged and aluminium eased 0.8%.

Gold pared overnight losses as risk appetite was subdued by events in Cairo. Gold for April delivery was recently $3 or 0.22% weaker at $1,337 an ounce but rebounding after earlier touching $1,327.

The major European markets closed mixed. Britain's FTSE rallied 0.71%, Germany's DAX was virtually unchanged at -0.01% and France's CAC eased 0.15%.

TRADING THEMES TODAY

CONSOLIDATION: Overnight leads don't get much duller: mixed finishes in the US and Europe, little direction in commodity markets. With China closed for the rest of the week, our market may actually pay some attention to domestic issues today - the impact of Cyclone Yasi overnight and a string of economic reports due this morning (see "Economic News" below).

OIL: Little change overnight but traders with a longer perspective and a grasp of geopolitics must be salivating. Tunisia's leader ousted; Egypt's Mubarak heading for the exit; Arab leaders across the Middle East scrambling to make concessions. Democracy is on the wing. The future is uncertain - and if there's one thing the oil market responds to, it's uncertainty.

ECONOMIC NEWS: The monthly performance of services index is due at 9.30 am. Monthly trade balance figures and building approvals are due at 11.30 am. Tonight's schedule in the US brings weekly unemployment claims, the services PMI, factory orders, natural gas storage, preliminary unit labour costs, preliminary non-farm productivity and a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on the economic outlook.

Good luck to all.