US stocks fluctuated on the back of muted appetite as investors returned from the Thanksgiving holiday. The markets are still set to end the week higher, supported by softer expectations from the Fed tightening in December and at the start of next year. The dollar fluctuated but remained unchanged, and the 10yr US Treasury yield settled at 3.72%. Meanwhile, EU data releases today painted a mixed picture in regard to the bloc’s economic outlook. Retail sales contracted by more than expected, falling by 10.3% y/y in October. On the other hand, the producer price pressures eased slightly, declining by 1.5% m/m; consumer confidence has also improved from the lows to -40.2.
China’s central bank cut the amount of cash lenders must hold in reserve by 25bps, the second cut this year, as the economy continues to battle with a weak economic backdrop. Indeed, the number of covid cases has been growing rapidly in recent days, forcing the government to introduce further restrictions. Aluminium started the day off on the front foot, but then the metal dipped back below the $2,370/t support level to close at $2,362.50/t. Likewise, copper jumped higher, testing the resistance level at $8,140/t but struggled above that level and weakened back to $8,008/t. Nickel broke support at $25,800/t to close at $25,416/t. Lead and zinc closed marginally unchanged, at $2,117/t and $2,920.50/t, respectively.
Oil futures jumped higher in the latter part of the day after the EU weighed on a higher-than-expected oil price cap; this momentum, however, did not last, and both WTI and Brent weakened marginally to $78/bl and $85/bl. Still, markets anticipate that Russian oil is already trading below the benchmark, making it more accessible to transport to the bloc in the coming months. Gold and silver were both seen lower, at $1,750/oz and $21.40/oz, respectively.
All price data is from 25.11.2022 as of 17:30
