Market Commentary for May 21, 2007

A gallon of gas jumped to $3.22 a gallon today, matching the March 1981 inflation adjusted all time higher price for gasoline in the United States, just ahead of the Memorial Day weekend holiday.

Trading action took a turn today with the DOW losing steam at the hands of the Bears and the NASDAQ maintained its strength with the help of the Bulls. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index managed to surpass its all time closing high during the afternoon session but faulted just shy of a new record close by about a point. The significance of the S&P 500 is that it contains all of the DOW 30 stocks and currently is higher for the year by 7.74%. At the closing bell, here is how the major indices ended the session: the DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average) moved lower by 13.65 points to end the session at 13,542.88; the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) gained 2.72 points to end at 9,897.46; the NASDAQ posted a gain of 11.22 points today for a close at 2,578.79; the S&P 500 moved higher by 2.35 points to end at 1,525.10 and the RUSSELL 2000 moved higher by 9.99 points to close at 833.65. The FTSE All-World Index ex-US (top Large/Mid Cap aggregate from over 2,700 stocks from the FTSE Global Equity Index Series (GEIS) which covers 90% of the worlds investable market capitalization) moved higher by 0.12 to close at 259.69 and the FTSE RAFI 1000 moved higher by 14.35 to close at 6,405.20.

Chicago Fed Index 3-Month average fell by 0.16 in April versus a drop by 0.43 in March and Chicago Fed April National Activity Index fell by 0.10 versus a drop by 0.11 in March.

Economic data released for the day: N/A

Commodities Markets

The trend was mixed across the board today for the Energy Sector: Light crude moved higher by $1.33 today to close at $66.27 a barrel; Heating Oil moved higher by $0.03 today to close at $1.95 a gallon; Natural Gas moved lower by $0.04 at $8.09 per million BTU and Unleaded Gas moved lower by $0.01 to close at $2.40 a gallon.

Metals Market ended the session mostly higher across the board today: Gold moved higher by $1.80 to close at $663.80 an ounce; Silver moved higher by $0.13 to close at $13.13 an ounce; Platinum moved lower today by $6.50 to close at $1,319.70 an ounce and Copper ended the day higher by $0.08 today to end at $3.40 per pound.

On the Livestock and Meat Markets, the trend was mixed across the board again today: Lean Hogs closed lower by 0.35 to close at 74.33; Pork Bellies ended the day higher by 0.55 to close at 103.20; Live Cattle moved higher by 1.0 to end the day at 93.40 and Feeder Cattle ended the day lower by 0.03 today to close at 113.70.

Other Commodities: Corn moved higher today for a nice gain of 13.75 points to end at 380.25 and Soybeans moved higher today for a substantial gain of 8.0 points to end at 800.50.

The e-mini Dow ended the session lower by 28 points to close at 13,571. The total Dow Exchange Volume for the day came in at 127,572 which are comprised of Electronic, Open Auction and Cash Exchange. Traders should review workshops available at the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) Educational in-person seminars schedules available on CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) website.

Bonds were higher across the board today: 2 year bond closed higher by 1/32 at 99 14/32; 5 year bond closed higher by 2/32 at 99 2/32; 10 year bond closed higher by 5/32 at 97 24/32 and the 30 year bond closed higher by 10/32 at 97 1/32.

The end of day results for the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) which is comprised of the total Exchange Volume for Futures and Options (EVFO) including Electronic, Open Auction and Cash Exchange ended the day at 3,940,244; Open Interest for Futures moved higher by 15,438 points to close at 10,410,075; the Open Interest for Options moved higher by 170,878 points to close at 7,951,431 and the Open Interest for OTC closed with no change at 4,939 for a total Open Interest of 18,366,445 for a total gain on the day by 186,316.

On the NYSE today, advancers came in at 1,903; decliners totaled 1,293; unchanged came in at 183; new highs came in at 389 and new lows came in at 28. Gainers and losers for the day on the NYSE: Texas Instruments Incorporated (TXI) gained 4.84 points to end the day at $82.16; Atlas Energy Resources LLC (ATN) climbed nicely higher to post a gain of 14.72% to tack on 4.55 points to close at $35.45; GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) fell by 4.53 points to end the trading day at$53.18; Alltel Corporation (AT) climbed higher by 4.39 points to end the day at $69.60 and IntercontinentalExchange Incorporated (ICE) moved higher on the Big Board by 6.90 points for a closing price of $146.08.

On the NASDAQ today, advanced totaled 2,042 decliners totaled 1,025; unchanged came in at 120, new highs came in at 208 and new lows came in at 66. Gainers and losers for the day on the NASDAQ: CYTYC Corporation (CYTC) rallied higher on the trading session by 21.77% to move higher by 7.62 points to close at $42.67; Hologic Incorporated (HOLX) fell by 4.19 points on the session for a closing day price of $53.41; Pioneer Companies Incorporated (PONR) moved higher for a gain of 16.14% to tack on 4.74 points on the session for a closing price of $34.12; Atlas America Incorporated (ATLS) plowed higher on the day by 14.69% to move higher by 8.93 points to close the trading day at $69.73 and ValueClick Incorporated (VCLK) moved nicely higher on the trading day for a gain by 14.27% to tack on 4.28 points for a closing price of $34.28.

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Millennium-Traders