The market managed to close at around the highest level for the second straight session. However, the gain was modest as none of the major three indices advanced more than 0.4%. We had some good news on the manufacturing front. The durable orders excluding transportation rose 2.5%, the best since last July. A record 28% increase in orders for electrical equipment was the main reason behind today’s positive report. In addition, bookings for non-defence capital goods excluding aircraft, which is usually used as an indicator for future business investment, climbed 4.2% in April and made it the biggest jump this year. But even a bullish durable orders report couldn’t overcome a revival in crude price, which pressed the overall market below the unchanged level for the majority of trading time.

Commodities and transportations were among the biggest winners for the session. Interestingly, the latter seemed to benefit anyway regardless of the direction in the oil price. Actually the unbeatable strength in the Dow Transportation Average prompted some market participants to forecast a new record in the Dow Industrial Average late this year. Outside the equity market, the CRB commodity index gained modestly while the US dollar was mixed against major currencies. Treasuries continued recent slump and pushed the 10-year note yields back above 4% mark for the first time since January. As we are approaching the end of the month, some window dressing should be expected.