Palm | Kelapa Sawit

DJI-NEW YORK, April 15 (Reuters) - Encouraging economic indicators sent U.S. stocks higher on Friday, but the market's recent struggles are set to continue into next week when more than one-fifth of S&P 500 companies report results.

The S&P 500 fell for a second straight week, and some in the market pointed to strong resistance building around 1,340. The daily chart shows a bearish double top near that level.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 56.68 points, or 0.46 percent, to 12,341.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 5.16 points, or 0.39 percent, to 1,319.68. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> added 4.43 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,764.65.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, April 15 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose more than 1 percent on Friday, ending above $109 a barrel on lift from news that consumer sentiment rose more than expected in April, supportive manufacturing data and China's continuing, if slightly lower, economic growth rate. But the late-week rally still left crude with a weekly loss.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May crude rose $1.55, or 1.43 percent to settle at $109.66 a barrel, having traded from $107.21 to $110.10. The May contract expires on Tuesday.

CBOT-CHICAGO, April 15 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures ended barely higher on Friday, but down about 4.4 percent on the week, with late-action on Friday led by soymeal's gain following new-crop corn and firm bids in cash. Soyoil also was up along with crude oil, traders said.

Grain prices were roiled early by a fresh recommendation from Goldman Sachs, which advised underweighting commodities for three to six months.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, April 15 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell to a two-week low on Friday, racking up a fourth straight day of losses as signs of weaker demand and declining vegetable oil markets sapped sentiment at a time when output is swelling.

The market has been weighed down for much of the week by a build-up in Malaysian inventories, soaring production and fears that commodity markets will soon reverse gains.

June palm oil on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled down 1.4 percent at 3,236 ringgit ($1,070) a tonne after falling as low as 3,232 ringgit per tonne, a level unseen since March 29. Traded volume stood at 23,000 lots of 25 tonnes each compared to the usual 25,000 lots.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-COLOMBO , April 14 (Reuters) - Indonesian stocks rose on Friday, led by financials, while worries about further policy tightening in China weighed on shares in Singapore and North Asia.

Indonesia's main benchmark index <.JKSE> ended 0.6 percent, buoyed by a spate of late buying and $9.3 million of net foreign inflows.

Banks were among the top blue-chip gains, with the country's top lender Bank Mandiri and Bank Central Asia , rising 1.5 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively.

However, further policy tightening by China's central bank could pressure emerging markets in Southeast Asia and riskier assets in general if investors feel it will slow China's insatiable demand for raw materials and other goods.

China reported on Friday that inflation leapt to a 32-month high, putting pressure on policymakers to do more to rein in prices.

So far, most tightening measures have sparked an immediate but brief sell-off in regional or global equity and commodity markets, but they have recouped the losses fairly quickly.

Singapore Strait Times Index (STI) <.FTSTI> fell 0.2 percent. Malaysia <.KLSE>, which saw a foreign outflow of $18.7 million, closed 0.3 percent weaker to a more than two-week weaker with a day's volume recording 0.93 percent of its 30-day average.