daytrades march 22 pre-market

Morning traders.

Market wrap: Local shares are set to open lower for the first session in five after a slump in commodity prices helped snap an eight-day winning streak for U.S. equities.

Futures traders marked the local June SPI futures contract down 19 points to 4873 as a rampant U.S. dollar drove oil and metals to sharp losses on Friday.

U.S. investors were unsettled by developments in Greece and a rate rise in India. The S&P 500 dropped 0.51%, the Dow 0.35% and the Nasdaq 0.71% but the indexes still locked in gains for the week.

Trading volume was higher than usual for "quadruple witching day", when contracts for stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and single-stock futures expire.

India's central bank surprised investors by raising interest rates on Friday, raising fears that other central banks may follow suit, ending an era of cheap borrowing that has helped stock markets recover from the global financial crisis. The quarter-of-a-percent rise also unsettled commodity markets because India is a major consumer of gold and other metals.

Greece's debt woes continued to weigh on markets as European Union officials vacillated about an aid package and Greek officials said they may soon be unable to sell debt. The euro fell sharply against the U.S. dollar as the Greek President pressed for a guarantee of financial support at a European Union summit this week.

"Greece is trying to force the E.U. into a firm commitment within a week with a threat of going to the IMF for a bailout," said a market strategist told MarketWatch. "Germany is basically saying, 'Fine, go to the IMF,' while others in the E.U. want to use the crisis to establish greater intra-E.U. cooperation and control."

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, surged for a second session, closing 0.62% higher and pressuring dollar-priced commodity prices.
Crude oil futures tumbled 1.9% to $80.68 a barrel. Traders said oil has been moving within a narrow range and little change is expected this week, which is light on economic data.

Gold suffered its heaviest one-day loss in a month as the rising dollar reduced its appeal as a currency hedge and the Indian rate rise fuelled demand fears. The spot price closed $18 or 0.17% lower at $1,107.90 an ounce. Other precious metals also fell back.

Industrial metals were pulled down by the general malaise but were not hit as hard as oil and gold. In London, copper dipped 0.55%, aluminium 0.55%, lead 1.5%, nickel 0.8%, tin 0.5% and zinc 2.3%.

Insurers and biotechs provided a rare glimpse of green in the U.S. Financial stocks were mixed and most sectors traded lower. Airlines slumped 3.1%, gold/silver miners 1.55%, industrials 1.1%, telecoms 1.1% and oilers 0.8%.

The major European markets closed mixed. Britain's FTSE rallied 0.13% on signs of a turnaround at Lloyds Bank, but Germany's DAX dipped 0.5% and France's CAC fell 0.3%.

TRADING THEMES THIS WEEK

GREECE: Yawn. I'm sure we're all over it but the debt crisis look likely to disrupt international markets until Europe and/or the IMF agree to an aid package. The Greek President is pressing for details during a European Summit due to start on Thursday. However, the German Chancellor says Greece does not need financial support and the issue should not even be on the agenda. In other words, they're as far apart as ever. This one could run and run.

CYCLONE ULUI: One wildcard to look out for over the next few days is companies negatively affected by the latest cyclone to hit northern Queensland. These could include insurers and miners in the area or who rely on local coal ports for shipping. Dalrymple Bay coal terminal stopped loading on March 17, rail networks closed and Macarthur Coal was considering declaring force majeure. Read more here: http://www.theage.com.au/business/cyclone-closes-coal-ports-20100319-qmbj.html (Thanks, PJ, for the link and for your tireless work on weekends.)

ECONOMIC NEWS: A relatively light week ahead both here and in the U.S. Monthly new vehicle sales are the only item on today's local agenda, due at 11.30 am and usually of minor interest. Tonight in the U.S., Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is due to speak about financial reforms. The main events in the U.S. this week are: existing home sales (Tue night); durable goods and new home sales (Wed night); and Fed chairman Bernanke's testimony before a House committee on "the unwinding of emergency Federal Reserve liquidity programs and implications for economic recovery" (Thu night).

Good luck to all.