Market Overview by Windsor Brokers.

[Oscar09]

Currencies

The dollar clawed up above a 12-year low against the yen after a major credit rating agency said the end to subprime-related write-downs is near, helping to ease some concerns about the fallout from global credit woes.

But the dollar remained vulnerable and stayed near record lows against the euro and the Swiss franc after data showed a surprising drop in deepened worries that the economy had entered a recession.

"Market players have achieved what they set out to achieve when they broke technically important targets at 101 yen and 100 yen and have now bought back a little," analyst said.

Major U.S. investment banks such as Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns are scheduled to report first quarter earnings report next week.

The dollar inched up to 100.80 yen from around 100.65 yen in late retail sales for February, which U.S. trade. It sank to as low as 99.77 yen on Thursday, its lowest level since late 1995.

The Euro edged down to $1.5615 after climbing to an all-time high of $1.5646 in late New York session.

The U.S. currency edged higher to 1.0122 Swiss francs after plumbing a record low of 1.0045 the previous session.




Energy

U.S. crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday after hitting a fresh intraday peak for the seventh session in a row as a weak dollar prompted more buying from speculators seeking investment alternatives.

Heating oil futures extended a record run, buoyed by a short-term forecast for colder weather in the key heating oil market of the U.S. Northeast and tight distillate supplies.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange April crude settled up 41 cents, or 0.37 percent, at a record $110.33 a barrel, trading from $109.08 to $111, a new intraday high. Trading was punctuated by some profit-taking in the early afternoon.

In London, April Brent crude settled up $1.27, or 1.2 percent, at a record $107.54 a barrel, trading $105.56 to $107.88, an intraday record. April Brent expires on Friday.

Precious metals

Gold climbed above the $1,000 an ounce level on Thursday, crude oil shot past $110 a barrel and cocoa futures soared to 28-year highs as the plummeting dollar fed a bull market in raw materials.

Spot gold was quoted at $994.30/995.10 in Thursday's late New York trading, up from Wednesday's $981.90/982.70.

Analysts cited the weak dollar, which sank to 12-year lows against the yen and trolled a new bottom against the Euro as traders bet on another cut in U.S. interest rates. The Federal Reserve's $200 billion infusion into distressed credit markets this week failed to lift the greenback for long.

Gold has gained almost 20 percent this year due to the battered dollar.

Stock Indices

U.S. stocks rallied on Thursday after a major credit rating agency said the end to subprime-related write-downs is in sight, triggering a rebound in financial shares.

Standard & Poor's said write-downs for large financial institutions are likely past the halfway mark, soothing investors' anxiety about the latest credit market fallout and increasing the allure of riskier assets.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 35.50 points, or 0.29 percent, to 12,145.74. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index increased 6.71 points, or 0.51 percent, to 1,315.48. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 19.74 points, or 0.88 percent, to 2,263.61.

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