Palm | Kelapa Sawit

DJI-NEW YORK, May 13 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Thursday as downbeat comments on the economy from tech company Cisco Systems Inc and retail chain Kohl's Corp cast doubt on the strength of the U.S. recovery.

Cisco's warnings about a still weak labor market and Kohl's saying it was unconvinced a recovery was at hand underscored the downbeat mood among investors alreadly rattled by fears of sovereign debt defaults in the euro zone. Cisco shares fell 4.5 percent to $25.53 and Kohl's lost 5.8 percent to $53.81.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 113.96 points, or 1.05 percent, to end at 10,782.95. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> fell 14.23 points, or 1.21 percent, to 1,157.44. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 30.66 points, or 1.26 percent, to close at 2,394.36.

The S&P 500 gained 5.47 percent in the first three days of the week -- its biggest three-day run since July 2009. That was after last week's drop of 6.4 percent.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, May 13 (Reuters) - U.S. front-month crude oil futures fell a third consecutive session on Thursday, pressured by rising inventories, especially at the NYMEX Oklahoma delivery point, and concerns about economic recovery as euro zone struggles to contain its fiscal problems.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, June crude fell $1.25, or 1.65 percent, to settle at $74.40 a barrel, trading from $73.62 to $76.45. The $73.62 intraday low was the weakest front-month price since $72.66 was struck on Feb. 12.

CBOT-CHICAGO, May 13 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade grains and soy complex close on Thursday.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - July down 1 cent at $9.64-1/2 per bushel; new-crop November down 2-1/4 cents at $9.35-1/4. Spillover selling pressure from falling wheat and corn. Spot May held firm on rolling of short positions from the May into the July contract. May is in delivery status.

CBOT-SOYOIL - July down 0.38 cent at 38.05 cents per lb. Meal/oil spreading weighed on soyoil and lifted soymeal. Weak crude oil also weighed on soyoil.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 (Reuters) - Malaysia palm oil futures hit a more than three-week low on Thursday as a stronger ringgit and weaker crude oil weighed on market sentiment, prompting players to unwind some positions.

Crude oil prices were mixed in Asian hours, with the benchmark U.S. crude contract dropping below $75 a barrel, approaching a three-month low on record stockpiles in the U.S. Midwest. Malaysian ringgit rose 0.3 percent to 3.19 per dollar after the country's central bank raised interest rates by 25 basis points to 2.5 percent.

The benchmark July crude palm oil futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 1.4 percent or 35 ringgit to 2,472 ringgit ($772.5) a tonne after falling at one point to as low as 2,466 ringgit, a level unseen since April 2. Overall volume stood at 12,443 lots of 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, May 13 (Reuters) - Thai stocks fell to their lowest in nearly one week on Thursday after authorities imposed tougher action to end anti-government protests while other Southeast Asian stock markets were mixed amid easing euro zone worries.

Sentiment of the Thai market dampened after authorities said they would shut roads surrounding a site occupied by anti-government protesters on Thursday evening, sparking calls by demonstrators for reinforcements as tensions rise in the deadliest political crisis in 18 years.

Singapore <.FTSTI> lost 0.43 percent after earlier small gain, Malaysia <.KLSE> was up 0.21 percent and Vietnam <.VNI>, the smallest bourse, edged down 0.13 percent. Losers in Singapore were led by a 1 percent drop in Singapore Telecommunications after Southeast Asia's biggest telco warned of lower earnings from Singapore and India in the coming year having beat expectations with a 6.6 percent rise in quarterly profit.

Shares in Kuala Lumpur were higher before the release of first-quarter GDP growth which expanded by 10.1 percent in the quarter from a year ago, its fastest pace in 10years, signalling that recovery is firmly on track for the trade-dependent
Southeast Asian country. Berjaya Corp jumped 7.8 percent after company said it will buy from its major shareholder a 70 percent stake in a sports betting operator.

Maybank shares were up 1.6 percent before it announced, after the market closed, a better-than-expected third-quarter net profit.