4:15PM Oil gained on weather concerns pushing stocks lower.

-Yields on 10-year bond closed at 4.797% and 30-year bond closed at 4.935%.
-Crude oil rose 15 cents to close at $72.51 per barrel.
-Gold rose $2.30 to close at $624.90 per ounce.

-Asian Markets closed mixed. Australia gained 0.7%, Hong Kong rose 0.4% and India advanced 0.35%. Indonesia dropped 0.9%, Thailand and Taiwan lost 0.4% and Japan closed 0.14% lower.

-European Markets closed nearly unchanged on a weak trading volume. U.K. gained 0.16% and Norway dropped 0.1%.

-Latin American Markets closed higher. Mexico gained 1.2%, Argentina rose 1.1% and Brazil advanced 0.5%.

Bernanke speech, threatening storms in the Caribbean, Ford Motor restructuring and another loss at H&R Block kept traders busy on a quiet day of trading. Chairman Bernanke focused his speech on globalization rate and its impact on poverty reduction. The chairman’s speech did not cover monetary and economic policy related issues. Bond markets paid a lot of attention to the speech and walked away with no direction for the interest rates in the coming months.

However, Mexican Central Bank did not raise rate for the fourth month in a row lifting stock markets in Latin America nearly 1%. Mexican infrastructure stocks including cement and metals makers led the advancing issues. Cemex (CX: chart) gained 1.5%. Brazil gained 0.5%.

Impending storms in the Caribbean and in the north of Venezuela kept oil traders busy. Oil rose $1.20 before settling at 15 gain at day’s close. Oil traders are worried that exploration platforms and refineries in the region may be affected by the storms. The Caribbean storm is likely to be upgraded to hurricane by the end of the weekend. Roughly 10% of crude oil facililties and 9% of natural gas facillities in the Gulf of Mexico region are still not operational.

Ford Motor (F: chart) is reported to be in talks to sell its luxury auto division including Jaguar and Land Rover. There are at least two potential suitors for the division. The stock gained 3% at close to $8.00.

H&R Block (HRB: chart) reported that it has set aside $102.1 million in reserve to cover potential loss in its sub-prime mortgage lending division. The company is having difficulty in securitizing its sub-prime loans, as investors have shown selectiveness. The company is also worried that rising interest rates and falling home values may push some of its customers in default.

11:30AM Energy stocks lead the gainers.
Oil and gas are back in focus after trading lower during the week. This time it is the worries related to weather. Tropical depression Ernesto located in the northern shores of Venezuela is watched closely by the weather service. Troipcal storm Debby in the Atlantic coast is likely to upgraded to a hurricane.

Light sweet crude oil price for October delivery at mid-day is trading up $1.14 to $73.50 per barrel and natural gas is 42 cents to $7.50 per mBTU.

Oil Service Hoders Trust (OIH: chart) is up $1.97 to $140.47. EOG Resources (EOG: chart) is up $1.48 to $68.89. Exxon Mobil (XOM: chart) is down a fraction, Conoco Phillips (COP: chart) is up 75 cents to $66.65 and Baker Hughes (BHI: chart) is up 85 cents to $75.89. Chesapeake Energy (CHK: chart) is 40 cent to $32.40.

10:30AM Sensex regains momentum for the second day.
The Sensex on BSE finished with gain of 40.25 points, or 0.35%, at 11,531.95. The benchmark index traded in 93 points range. The market breadth was positive, as the advance-decline ratio on BSE was 1.30:1. Of the total shares traded, 1,424 shares gained, 1,076 declined and 67 were unchanged. The turnover on BSE was Rs 3,197.28 crore, compared to Thursday’s Rs 3,165 crore. From the Sensex stocks, 18 advanced and 12 declined.

State Bank of India led the advancers gaining 3.37% to Rs 903.60. It traded between Rs 882 and 913. Aluminium and copper large-cap, Hindalco, surged 3% to Rs 173 and Hindustan Lever advanced 2.35% to Rs 237.15. Tata Steel jumped 2.15% to Rs 528.40 and Bajaj Auto added 1.83% to Rs 2745 on 59,884 shares.

Reliance Industries advanced 0.31%, to Rs 1,110. It surged to a high of Rs 1,124.90, and also slipped to a low of 1,102. Reliance Industries was the most active stock on BSE, with a turnover of Rs 225.29 crore, followed by Mahindra Gesco Developers, with Rs 109.42 crore and StateBank of India, with Rs 107.26 crore.

Metal stocks were in demand, as SAIL gained 1.20% to Rs 76.65, Lloyd Steel added 5% to Rs 8.27, Jindal Saw advanced 3.60% to Rs 299, Monnet Ispat moving up 2.11% to Rs 174. Cement stocks rallied on strong buying. India Cement led the advancers moving up 3.13% to Rs 196.10, Gujarat Ambuja Cements edged up 0.35% to Rs 114, Prism Cement advanced 5% to Rs 35.80, Birla Corporation gained 2% to Rs 283, Dalmia Cement was up 7.26% to Rs 30) and Andhra Cements added 1.05% to Rs 33.55.

Stocks that led the decliners included, Reliance Energy, declined 2.10% to Rs 446.80, Tata Motors lost 1.45% to Rs 848 and NTPC dropped 1.30% to Rs 124.50.

Small-cap and mid-cap stocks also advanced, including Birla Power soaring 20% to Rs 28.20, Zenith Birla gaining 20% to Rs 55.25, India Infoline moving up 17.34% to Rs 179, Aurionpro Solutions jumping 13.70% to Rs 127.25 and Sterlite Opticals rising 12.48% to Rs 180.20.

Hindustan Motors jumped 6.48% to Rs 42.70 on a high volume of 43.32 lakh shares after the West Bengal government allowed it to develop land at its plant near Kolkata and Infotech Enterprises soared 4.24% to Rs 204.10 after its joint venture company, Infotech Aerospace Services, opened a second facility in Puerto Rico.