Good morning traders!

In Asia today, the Nikkei ended up 377.91 points at 13,688.28, while the Hang
Seng reached midway up 340.47 points at 23,931.05.

New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March,
touched the all-time peak in electronic trading before it lapsed.

In Asian morning trade, the contract for April delivery, which took over, was
trading at $99.90 a barrel, up 20 cents from the previous day.

Happy trading!

G.

OUTLOOK Reed Elsevier to report strong 2007OUTLOOK Centrica FY opg profit seen higher; eyes on British Gas performanceOUTLOOK Kingfisher Q4 to reveal slowdownOUTLOOK BAE Systems FY profit to rise on land & armaments, programmes progressOUTLOOK Shire FY profit seen up but Vyvanse in focusAustralian shares close higher on strong H1 results from blue chips - UPDATETFN economic and business calendar

TFN UK calendar and forecasts for today

The Thursday Press RoundupLondon shares outlook - up, after Wall Street rally; Centrica, BAE in focus

BROKERWATCH Alliance & Leicester cut to 'underweight' at Morgan Stanley, HSBC

BROKERWATCH BP downgraded to 'sell' vs 'hold' at Citigroup, tgt 530p vs 570p

Thomson Financial UK at a glance share guide

BROKERWATCH Ladbrokes and William Hill target prices cut at Investec

UK smallcap opening - Imaginatik ticks up on Pfizer funding

BROKERWATCH Kingfisher downgraded to 'sell' vs 'hold' at Seymour Pierce

UK smallcap opening - Bisichi Mining rises on coal prices rise

UK smallcap opening - Kiwara higher on positive drilling updateLondon shares open higher, after Wall Street rally; BAE up as profit risesUK smallcap opening - Scotty Group edges up on trading update

STOCKWATCH Kingfisher higher after in-line update; brokers remain positiveUK smallcap opening - Dori Media climbs on better-than-expected FY results

UK smallcap opening - Networkers up after positive update

MPH 21 - 23p +1.50p

breaking into new highs lately after the bounce

BROKERWATCH Heineken target cut to 43 eur from 47.5 at ING UPDATEUK smallcap opening - Bede down on below market value indicative offer

STOCKWATCH BAE Systems higher after strong results; Numis Securities 'buy'UK smallcap opening - BATM ahead on bumper FY results; dividend resumption

UK small caps open higher; Imaginatik strong on Pfizer share subscription

STOCKWATCH Reed Elsevier shares rise on restructuring plan

Metals - Gold, precious metals hit highs as dollar eases, inflation fears growMetals - Copper hits 4 1/2 mth peak amid surging commodity prices, tight stocks