Morning Market Overview Nov 20

With technology sliding broadly, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed down 36.32, or 1.66%, to 2156.82. The Standard & Poor's 500, meanwhile, fell 14.90, or 1.34%, to 1094.90. Energy and materials were two of its weakest sectors after both areas had paced the index higher for much of November. For the month, the S&P 500 remains up 5.67%. While the slate of economic reports were mostly mixed on the session, including no change in the number of new jobless claims last week, given both of these sectors had helped lead stocks to new highs for 2009 in recent days. Among the declining commodities companies in the Dow were Chevron, off 1.58, or 2%, to 77.34, and Alcoa, down 54 cents, or 3.9%, to 13.22.

European equities declined for the third straight session Thursday, with lower commodity futures prices taking the shine off the mining sector and downbeat guidance weighing on shares of Danone. The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index fell 1.7% to close at 245.52, paring its year-to-date gain to 23.8%. In the mining sector, Xstrata shares fell 5.1% and Anglo American shares dropped 3.9%, as the dollar gained some traction against the euro and sterling, decreasing the appeal of commodities for investors. Companies cutting guidance against this backdrop included Danone, down 4.4% in Paris. Danone's losses pressured the broader French equities market, with the CAC-40 index falling 1.8% to close at 3,760.22. The German DAX index dropped 1.5% to end at 5,702.18. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index declined 1.4% to settle at 5,267.70.

Asian stock markets ended mixed Thursday, with some investors apparently pausing for breath after recent gains in the absence of clear cues from Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 Average finished 1.3% lower at 9549.47, while the broader Topix index fell for the seventh straight session, by 1.5%. South Korea's Kospi rose 1.0% and Taiwan's Taiex slipped 0.1%. China's Shanghai Composite advanced 0.5% but Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gave up 0.9% to finish at 22,643.16. Japanese investors were fretting about a recent spate of capital raisings in a weak market. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group fell 3.7% after the bank Wednesday said it planned to bolster its capital base by issuing $11.1 billion in new shares. Some other banks fell on concerns they may soon announce similar capital-raising plans, with Mizuho Financial Group skidding 6.6% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group shedding 4.6%. Exporters also lost ground as the yen strengthened against the U.S. dollar, with Sony Corp. falling 2.2% and Toyota Motor Corp. giving up 1.7%.

A stronger U.S. dollar knocked lower base metals on the London Metal Exchange Thursday. Copper rose sharply this week to a new 2009 high just shy of $7,000 a metric ton. Prices are now trading down from the week's high now. The unexpected sharp drop in U.S. home construction for October triggered selling Wednesday and that selling continued Thursday. Crude futures piled on additional losses Thursday after U.S. equities traded lower and amid concerns about the economy. Light, sweet crude for December delivery settled $2.12 lower at $77.46 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures finished a touch higher, despite the U.S. dollar gaining ground. Comex December gold rose 70 cents to settle at $1,141.90 an ounce. Comex December silver rose 4 cents to settle at $18.455 an ounce.