Palm | Kelapa Sawit

DJI-NEW YORK, May 12 (Reuters) - The Dow rose on Tuesday as investors scooped up defensive shares, including Pfizer , while energy companies' stocks climbed as oil hit a six-month high.

But the S&P was little changed and the Nasdaq fell as financial and technology shares declined after leading the recent rally from bear market lows.

Energy shares also supported the market as U.S. crude oil futures briefly touched $60 a barrel before settling up 35 cents at $58.85 on hopes an economic recovery may bolster fuel demand.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 50.34 points, or 0.60 percent, to 8,469.11. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was off 0.89 points, or 0.10 percent, to 908.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was down 15.32 points, or 0.88 percent, at 1,715.92.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, May 12 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose further on Tuesday after weekly inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute showed a surprise drawdown, against forecasts for a stock build.

Earlier, crude futures ended at a six-month high as price dips attracted buyers, but gains were slim ahead of weekly inventory reports. A weaker dollar also helped crude higher.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, at 5:05 p.m. EDT (1705 GMT), June crude was up 86 cents, or 1.47 percent, at $59.36 a barrel, It had settled up 35 cents, or 0.6 percent, at $58.85, the highest since prices closed at $59.33 on Nov. 11. It traded from $57.81 to $60.08, also the highest intraday price since Nov. 11, when crude hit $62.28.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - May up 7-1/2 cents at $11.37-1/2 a bushel, July up 1-1/2 at $11.17-1/2.

Late short-covering boosted old-crop months to higher close but market struggled all day as profit-taking weighed on the market despite USDA cutting its May 2008/09 world and U.S. soybean ending stocks forecasts.

USDA trimmed 35 million bushels from its 2008/09 U.S. soybean ending stocks estimate, putting it at a five-year low of 130 million bushels. Average trade estimate was 126 million.

USDA pegged 2009 Argentine soy production 34.0 million tonnes, down from 39 million tonnes estimated last month and sharply below the 46.2 million tonnes produced last year.

Estimate for 2009/10 ending stocks for soy 230 million, near an average of analysts' estimates for 228 million.

CBOT-SOYOIL - May up 0.11 cent at 39.39 cents a lb, July up 0.10 cent at 39.68 cents.

Following higher crude oil market and late short-covering rally in old-crop soybeans.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, May 12 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm futures surged 2.4 percent to a one-week top on Tuesday on fears of hot dry weather cutting into production and traders taking positions ahead of a crucial U.S. soy report.

The benchmark July contract settled up 65 ringgit at 2,725 ringgit ($775.5) per tonne, a level unseen since May 4. Overall volume jumped to 13,619 lots of 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, May 12 (Reuters) - Major Southeast Asian stock markets recovered from early falls on Tuesday, with late buying of banks such as DBS and OCBC pulling Singapore higher and Thailand rising for a seventh day.

Singapore's benchmark stock index <.FTSTI> rose 0.6 percent, erasing an early 1.4 percent drop to its lowest since May 6, with the biggest lender, DBS Group , ending up 2.3 percent, recouping a 2.6 percent loss early in the day.

Malaysia's index <.KLSE> ended down 0.24 percent, recovering most of an early 1.2 percent fall to a near one-week low, while Indonesia's index <.JKSE> edged down 0.2 percent, after falling about 0.7 percent earlier, also to its lowest in nearly a week.