YAHOO [ BRIEFING.COM ]: Stocks fell to a marked loss as the dollar reversed an early loss to stage its third straight advance.

For the first time since August the greenback has gained ground against competing currencies in three straight days of trade. The latest advance, which netted the greenback a 0.9% gain after it had been down as much as 0.4%, has the dollar up 2.8% from the 2010 low that it set just last week.

There were no market moving announcements from any widely-held companies and data for today was of little consequence, so action among stocks remained tethered to that of the dollar. Keeping with their inverse relationship, the stock market moved lower as the dollar extended its climb into the close.

Financials were hit the hardest. The sector dove to a 2.2% loss. Of the sector's 81 members, only Marshal & Isley (MI 5.59, +0.05) and People's United (PBCT 12.56, +0.04) booked gains. Property plays were particularly weak.

Meanwhile, bond insurer Ambac Financial (ABK 0.24, -0.28) saw its share price slashed in half following news that it has filed for bankruptcy.

Materials stocks made up the next worst performing sector. The sector had actually been up as much as 0.9% as it traded with relative strength in the first half of the session, but it settled with a 1.6% loss.

Early buying among basic materials stocks was partly helped by continued strength among commodities. Precious metals were particularly strong as gold gained 0.4% to settle pit trade at $1410.10 per ounce and silver rallied 5.3% to settle at $28.91 per ounce. Prior to the close of pit trade gold hit a new all time high of $1424.30 per ounce and silver set a fresh 30-year high of $29.34 per ounce. Both rolled over in electronic trade, though.

Though precious metals prices were pushed lower after the close of pit trade and the dollar staged a strong rally, the CRB Commodity Index continued its climb with a 1.2% gain to a new two-year high. The CRB has booked nine consecutive gains.

Treasuries failed to attract any support today. In fact, they encountered increased pressure after results from an auction of 10-year Notes were released. The auction drew a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.80 on dollar demand of $67.2 billion and an indirect bidder participation rate of 56.6%. The benchmark 10-year Note fell close to a point while the 30-year Bond dropped two full points. Their yields were last quoted near 2.66% and 4.25%, respectively.

Commodities continued their rally today, with every sector but livestock finishing higher on the day. Soft commodities led the charge with a 3.5% rally.

Dec gold finished higher by 0.4% to $1410.10 per ounce, while Dec silver rallied for 5.3% to settle at $28.91 per ounce. Both metals rallied again today, with gold trading to a new all time high at $1424.30 per ounce and silver surging a fresh 30-yr high at $29.34 per ounce. However, the dollar eventually recouped its losses and that weighed on both metals. In afterhours trade, gold futures have turned negative while silver has given back most of its gains.

Dec crude oil finished lower by 0.5% to $86.72 per barrel, effectively ending its 6-session rally. The rebound in the dollar pushed crude into negative territory and it was unable to recover. Dec natural gas finished higher by 2.3% to $4.21 per MMBtu, as it traded to its best levels since mid-Aug.

Advancing Sectors: (None)
Declining Sectors: Financials (-2.2%), Materials (-1.6%), Industrials (-0.9%), Consumer Discretionary (-0.9%), Utilities (-0.6%), Health Care (-0.5%), Consumer Staples (-0.4%), Tech (-0.3%), Energy (-0.3%), Telecom (-0.1%)DJ30 -60.09 NASDAQ -17.07 NQ100 -0.6% R2K -1.5% SP400 -1.1% SP500 -9.85 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 743/2.19 bln/1904 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 809/1.11 bln/2194