US stocks fluctuated today. Economic data released today pointed to existing home sales falling short of expectations, decreasing to 3.89 million in June compared to 4.11 million recorded the previous month, as the prolonged period of high interest rates has deterred many potential homebuyers. The dollar index increased to 104.5, while the 10-year US Treasury yield remained mostly unchanged at 4.23%. In Europe, the consumer confidence indicator showed an improvement in July, increasing by 1 percentage point to -13.0, the highest level since the start of 2022. Tomorrow, S&P Global PMI prints will provide a clearer picture of major economies’ private sector activity in July.
Base metals continued to weaken today but started to show signs of slowing downside momentum. In particular, aluminium defended the support at $2,300/t as copper hesitantly approaches the $9,000/t level. Similarly, nickel struggled below the $16,000/t level. Lead and zinc are testing new lows as they approach their respective support levels at $2,000/t and $2,700/t. We expect the complex to edge lower as each metal tests its own respective support level to help gauge future price narrative. If the markets confirm these levels, we anticipate prices will move sideways before they begin to recover on the upside.
Gold rebounded slightly, cementing the support level at $2,400/oz, while silver edged slightly lower, testing $28.7 before bouncing back to $29/oz. Oil saw another day of decline, with WTI and Brent crude at $77/bbl and $81.2/bbl, respectively.
All price data is from 23.07.2024 as of 17:30