daytrading nov 12 pre-market

Morning traders.

Market wrap:

The share market is likely to recoup yesterday's losses at the open after US stocks inched higher during a low-key, holiday-affected session.

The December SPI 200 futures contract bounced 24 points or 0.4% to 5425 as the Veterans Day public holiday in the US put a dampener on world markets.

With no major economic news to offer direction, the S&P 500 closed one point or 0.08% higher after spending the night trapped in a tight five-point range. The Dow put on 21 points or 0.13% to seal its 35th record close for the year. The Nasdaq added 0.02%. Banks and bond markets were closed for the US holiday and many trading desks ran skeleton staff.

"Markets seem to be waiting for a lot of questions to be answered," Brian Jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Funds Management in the US, told Reuters. "Some are waiting for the blueprint from the Chinese leadership about reforms to come. Others are waiting to see what policy response GDP and inflation data in Europe will bring from the European Central Bank. And everyone is waiting to see if growth in the United States is fast enough to merit a Fed taper, or if inflation is too low to justify a taper-delay."

Risk assets modestly outperformed the broader market. The Dow Jones Transportation Average gained 0.46% and the Morgan Stanley Cyclical Average rose by 0.29%. With spot iron ore unchanged overnight at US$135.90 a dry tonne, BHP dipped 1.24% and Rio Tinto lost 1.43% in US trade.

European markets showed more enthusiasm for upbeat Chinese economic data released over the weekend. Germany's DAX rallied 0.33%, France's CAC 0.69% and Britain's FTSE 0.29%.

Oil continued to recover from last week's four-month low after negotiations over Iran's nuclear program broke down. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery was recently ahead 48 cents or 0.5% at US$95.08 a barrel.

"After the correction of the last few weeks, negative sentiment looks overextended," strategists at Credit Suisse wrote in a note quoted on MarketWatch. "Latest US oil demand numbers are robust and we think downside risks from current levels are contained."

Gold remained under mild pressure from the recent change in expectations regarding the Federal Reserve's stimulus reduction timetable. December gold futures were lately down $1.80 or 0.1% at US$1,282.80 an ounce.

Most base metals continued to drift lower ahead of policy statements from China's Communist Party leaders when the plenum wraps up tonight. In London, aluminium eased 0.3%, lead 0.6%, nickel 1.15% and zinc 0.5%. Copper put on 0.1% and tin 0.4%. US copper for December delivery was recently up 0.1% or less than a third of a cent at US$3.26 a pound.

TRADING THEMES TODAY

TEST FOR THE BULLS: An interesting session lies ahead with a positive platform offering the bulls a chance to reverse yesterday's losses and the bears an opportunity to reload shorts at higher levels. Yesterday was a clear win for the bears, continuing the mildly negative tone that has developed over the last few weeks. For now the XJO appears to be in a gentle, short-term retrace within a medium and long-term uptrend. Most traders prefer retraces to be short and violent but you gotta work with what the market gives you. As the day trading threads will once again be dominated by PAB ramps, I'll pre-empt Endless by reminding traders to take some profits along the way.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Business confidence is due at 11.30am EST. A quiet start to the trading week in the US continues tonight with the small business index the only scheduled release of any import.

Good luck to all.