daytrading april 2 pre-market

Morning traders. Thanks Trees.

Market wrap:

A positive open awaits after US stocks hit record levels as investors cheered solid economic data and anticipated a new quarterly earnings season.

The June SPI 200 futures contract rallied 27 points or 0.5% to 5410 as Wall Street shrugged off yesterday's mixed Chinese manufacturing data, rising for a third night.

The S&P 500 advanced 14 points or 0.73% to a new all-time closing high as an improved manufacturing reading dampened concerns over weak winter economic data. The Dow rallied 75 points or 0.46% and the Nasdaq bounced back from last week's heavy fall with a rise of 69 points or 1.64%.

"The [manufacturing] data were within the range of expectations, car sales were pretty good, so it is not surprising to see markets go higher," John Canally, economist and investment strategist at LPL Financial in the US, told MarketWatch. "But there is another factor - we are in the earnings sweet spot right now, and as companies start reporting in the next couple of weeks, they will start beating lowered expectations. About 94% of all the gains on the S&P 500 come during the period of two weeks before the earnings season and four weeks of actual earnings season."

The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index advanced to to 53.7% last month from 53.2% in February, just below the 53.9% forecast of economists surveyed by MarketWatch but above the important 50% level that indicates more companies are expanding than contracting.

Also helping sentiment were improved car sales from Ford, GM and Chrysler. Vehicle sales increased to an annualised rate of 16.4 million last month from 15.34 million in February, ahead of expectations.

The consumer-discretionary and tech sectors led the rally, rising more than 1%. Also notably strong were last week's most beaten-up sectors: small caps and biotechs. The Russell 2000 index bounced 1.32% and the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index 2.13%.

"March was a tale of two markets, as the S&P 500 held up well, but areas like tech and small caps were hit very hard," Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in the US, told Bloomberg. "Many considered the weakness in small-caps and tech to be a warning sign for the overall market. Now as we head into April and new highs potentially on the horizon, it is looking like the bulls once again are taking control."

Iron ore rose again yesterday, helping BHP and Rio Tinto extend overnight rebounds in the US. Spot iron ore for import to China increased by 80 cents to US$117.60 a dry tonne. In US trade, BHP gained 2.02% and Rio Tinto 0.59%.

Oil dived below US$100 a barrel as traders focussed on yesterday's weak HSBC Chinese manufacturing report, rather than the stronger version released by a government agency. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for May delivery was recently down $2.18 or 2.15% at US$99.40 a barrel after settling at US$99.74.

Gold's decline extended to a fifth session, the metal's longest losing run since November. Gold for June delivery was lately off $3.20 or 0.25% at US$1,280.60 an ounce after settling at US$1,280.

Copper gained on speculation that yesterday's Chinese manufacturing reports bolstered the case for further government stimulus. US copper for May delivery was recently up 0.4% or more than a cent at US$3.04 a pound. In London, copper gained 0.3%, aluminium 0.6%, nickel 0.8% and tin 0.7%. Zinc lost 0.9% and lead 1%.

European stocks were boosted by news that manufacturing in the euro-zone continued to expand last month. The final version of Markit's Purchasing Managers' Index was unchanged from the flash version at 53. The Stoxx Europe 600 index put on 0.61% as Germany's DAX added 0.5%, France's CAC 0.81% and Britain's FTSE 0.83%.

TRADING THEMES TODAY

WALL STREET BREAKOUT: The S&P 500 finally found enough fuel to push through the overhead resistance that prevented such a formidable barrier last month. A new earnings season is just around the corner and the heavy-hitters are getting set for what is traditionally a bullish market phase. Risk appetite showed evidence of significant improvement, with gains in small caps, biotechs and cyclical sectors. Gold stocks in the US edged up 0.36% despite a fifth loss in the metal, suggesting some traders reckon a bounce is due. The dive in the oil market was the only sign that yesterday's mixed Chinese data rang any alarm bells.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Monthly building approvals are due at 11.30am EST. Europe releases quarterly GDP data tonight. Highlights tonight in the US include the ADP non-farm employment report, factory orders and crude oil inventories.

Good luck to all.