ahm

A few weeks ago the US government slapped import duties on Chinese manufactured tires. China shot back by launching and investigation through the World Trade Organization (WTO) of US car exports to China.

Now we have round two. The US has imposed import duties of up to 99% on $2.6 billion dollars of Chinese pipe imports.

The ruling is temporary, however, US Customs will start collecting cash or bond deposits on imports. A final ruling will be made in March. Meanwhile, President Obama plans his first visit to China within a few weeks.

U.S. stock futures were higher Friday morning, continuing Thursday's strong performance and nearing two-week highs. All eyes this morning will turn to the government's jobs report. While there have been signs of growth and recovery in the economy, the labor market has been one of the biggest concerns, as the Federal Reserve statement just from Wednesday attests.

[Update 8:33 a.m.: Stock futures changed course after the government reported the unemployment rate rose to 10.2%, above the 9.9% expected. Nonfarm payrolls dropped by 190,000 in October, bringing to total number of jobs lost in the recession to 7.3 million.]

U.S. stock markets surged about 2% on Thursday with the Dow Jones Industrial Average reclaiming the 10,000 mark with a 203 point move. Positive economic news, including sales results from retailers and upbeat outlook from tech giant Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO).

American businesses are setting up shop in Mexico instead of China. China, which was the number one location for manufacture of goods bound for the U.S., has fallen into third place. Mexico is now number one, followed by India.

Several factors have converged to make Mexico an attractive place for manufacture. Daniel Silva of the Mission Economic Development Authority said: "Compared to China, Mexico offers better access to North American markets with a shorter, faster and cheaper transportation route to move products and supplies by truck, rather than over thousands of miles by ship, rail and truck combined."

"We have very few buy recommendations currently; one exception is Franco-Nevada (Toronto: FNV.CA)," says resource expert Adrian Day.

In his The Global Analyst, the advisor explains, "Franco Nevada is one of our all-time favorites; it has top management, a solid balance sheet, and risk-averse business plan.

He continues, "The company previously merged with Newmont, and was reborn in a spin off nearly two years ago. Although the stock has nearly doubled since the IPO, it still represents good value.

U.S. stock futures drifted a little lower (later a little higher) Thursday morning following Wednesday's Federal Reserve's statement that it was keeping rates at record low levels. However, earnings from tech giant Cisco accompanied by an upbeat outlook could give a boost to tech. Also this morning, investors will watch as retail chain-stores report October sales.

[Update: Futures now point to a higher open following retail sales data, earnings and lower claims numbers.]

On Wednesday, Wall Street ended mixed and relatively flat after the Federal Reserve decided to keep rates steady. While conceding the economy has picked up, policymakers said this was not enough to hike interest rates, saying an increase will instead depend on when the labor market and inflation pickup. Given that there have been no inflationary pressures and that unemployment is expected to rise, the dollar weakened yesterday and short-term Treasury yields fell. The Fed also cautioned consumer spending would remain strained. Of course, the market would have liked to see a stronger show of confidence.

Under the radar: Some trends are obvious enough and visible to all investors. Others are more-subtle, but are just as potent, and these often slip 'under the radar.'

Case in point: Saudi Arabia's oil exports to the United States have fallen to a 22-year low, at 745,000 barrels per day (bpd) in August, the latest month for which data is available, from 1.14 million bpd in July, according to data compiled by the U.S. Energy Information Agency. August's 745,000 bpd total is the lowest since December 1987. On a year-over-year basis (August 2008-August 2009), those exports are down about 50%.

U.S. stock futures climbed on Wednesday morning, ahead of the decision by the Federal Reserve on interest-rate and monetary policy. This afternoon, the Fed will give its outlook on the economy and the corresponding policy it's taking. It is widely believed the Fed will not raise rates. Meanwhile, more earnings and economic data are on tap.

Unlike this morning, traders appeared more cautious Tuesday, as the Fed began its two-day policy meeting. Stocks ended mixed and fairly unchanged following news that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B) has decided to buy Burlington Northern Santa Fe (NYSE: BNI) in a deal worth $44 billion and as Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) announced a 6-7% workforce reduction.

Here's a shocker: India's central bank just bought 200 tons of gold.

India paid $6.7 billion to the International Monetary Fund for the gold, securing the equivalent of 8% of the world's annual production. India's move is a clear signal that Asia is moving away from the U.S. dollar.

India's finance minister said the reason for the purchase was that the economies of Europe and the US had "collapsed."

Bloomberg News took a recent poll of its subscribers. Here are some highlights of the survey:

• Only 31% of investors saw investment opportunities in the stock market, down from 35% in the July survey.
• Worldwide, investors see the U.S. as the weakest link in the world economy. Twenty five percent of respondents see an unemployment rate of 11% in the U.S. next year.
• Respondents see China and India as the most promising markets and commodities are the asset of choice.
• Real Estate and bonds are out of favor, with 40% saying that bonds will have the worst returns over the next year.

If on Monday investors were ready to bounce back from Friday's selloff, today stock futures are sharply lower, indicating U.S. stock markets are poised to slump at the open ahead of the Federal Reserve two-day policy meeting that begins today. Another rate hike from Australia, poor results from UBS and weak European markets weigh on sentiment.

Monday was a volatile session. Stocks rallied in the morning following a surprise profit from Ford (NYSE: S) and an upbeat home sales reading, but mostly due to October's manufacturing index that jumped to its highest level in three and a-half years. That didn't hold up, though and the Dow skidded to negative territory only to bounce back later in the afternoon as buyers came back in.

We've had wet weather in the Midwest during the harvest season, resulting in higher grain prices.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a report on wholesale crop prices paid to farmers. Let's look at some prices:

• Corn rose 29 cents per bushel to $3.54
• Wheat jumped 8 cents per bushel to $4.56
• Soybeans dropped 1 cent per bushel to $9.74
• Wholesale milk prices jumped 7.1% in October to $1.19 per gallon. Milk prices, however are down 22% from last year.

"We're adding Brazil's Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE), the world's leading iron ore producer, to our model growth portfolio," says growth stock expert Stephen Leeb.

In his The Complete Investor, he explains, "This outstanding company offers investors simultaneous stakes in two key areas: iron ore-a commodity essential to any and all infrastructure projects-and Brazil's appreciating currency, the real.

"When it comes to understanding the importance of a commodity such as iron ore, the tale starts with China. Even with China's GDP growth again approaching double digits, the Chinese government continues to aggressively promote growth, offering consumers incentives to buy cars and investing in infrastructure, from roads to bridges to sewers to energy plants.

U.S. stock futures were significantly higher Monday morning, with Wall Street ready to start November on a solid note following Friday's sharp selloff. This morning is indicative of the week ahead full of earnings and economic data. In addition, this week also features the Federal Reserve policy meeting.

On Friday, markets skidded some 2.5 percent as the fate of CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) hung in balance and the strength of the economic recovery, and with it the markets' rally, questioned. And after seven months winning streak, which took Wall Street over 50 percent higher from March lows, October finished in a down note.

Now here's a real important story. If you are an oil trader, chances are you traded the New York Mercantile Exchange West Texas Intermediate (WTI) contract. World pricing of oil by the biggest exporters was based on the WTI contract.

Now, suddenly, Saudi Arabia has decided to drop the WTI contract as the benchmark pricing unit for its oil. It is substituting a contract called the Argus Sour Crude Index, which will track the price in the physical market of a basket of U.S. gulf coast crudes, including Mars, Poseidon, and Southern Green Canyon.

To say that it's been a difficult decade for New York City, and the nation at large, would be an understatement. In New York, more than 100,000 lay-offs in the financial community stemming from the bursting of the leveraging bubble and closure of key financial institutions has led to the city's worst recession in more than two decades.

However, the financial and economic crisis that has slowed New York's economy, surprisingly, has not resulted the loss of one city title -- that of financial capital of the world. 29% of respondents to a survey listed the city as the leading global financial center, with the city that never sleeps topping both Singapore, 17%, and London, 16%, according to a Bloomberg Global Poll. The poll of 1,452 Bloomberg subscribers was conducted October 23-27.