US stocks opened lower today as investors await Nvidia's earnings results. Any indication of weakening demand could not only cause Nvidia's stock to plummet but also drag down other semiconductor stocks and potentially the broader market. Despite these concerns, the company's quarterly sales are still expected to more than double year-over-year. The dollar index struggled to climb above the 101 level today, trading at 100.93 at the time of writing, while the 10-year US Treasury yield remained mostly unchanged at 3.82%. This stability in Treasury yields suggests that the market has largely priced in the anticipated interest rate cut by the Fed in September, leaving little room for further movement until more definitive economic data is released.
Base metals experienced a correction today due to the stronger dollar, following several days of strong gains, leading to a slight mean reversion in the market. Weakening sentiment in China had little effect on the complex. In particular, aluminium softened into $2,500/t level today but struggled to breach it completely, suggesting that we might see prices remain elevated in the near term. Copper eased into $9,300/t to $9,260.50/t. Lead and zinc followed suit, weakening to $2,085/t and $2,881/t, respectively.
The stronger dollar put pressure on precious metals today. Gold softened to $2,507/oz, while silver declined to $29.39/oz. Oil prices edged lower, with WTI and Brent crude trading at $75.1/bbl and $79.1/bbl, respectively.
All price data is from 28.08.2024 as of 17:30
