US stocks declined at the start of the week as the continued growth of omicron cases has weakened the sentiment in the markets once again. Around 20 central banks are due to hold their meetings this week, and this should help drive the markets. The Fed will be a key driving point for monetary policy direction going into next year. The dollar gained ground, but the 10yr US Treasury yield softened back to 1.41%.
Metals continued to fluctuate following Friday’s trading session, with the base metals complex mostly mixed. Aluminium was the biggest mover, testing resistance at $2,260/t before closing near day’s highs at $2,654/t. Lead and zinc were also higher, although gains were moderate; the metals closed at $2,298/t and $3,325/t, respectively. Copper managed to close in the red after gaining ground in the first half of the day; the metal closed at $9,447.50/t. Likewise, nickel closed lower at $19,711/t. As a result of a change in China’s rhetoric to stabilisation of the economy, iron ore futures jumped 7% and have opened higher the next day at CNY114.50/mt. Restrictions on the property sector are expected to remain unchanged, but the industry is likely to add volatility to the longer-term demand outlook picture.
Oil futures steadied today, following last week’s rally, with WTI and Brent softening marginally into $71.45/bl and $74.79/bl. Precious metals were mostly with; gold and silver strengthened into $1,788.21/oz and $22.30/oz, respectively.
For more in-depth analysis of base and precious metals, please see our Quarterly Metals report.
All price data is from 01.12.2021 as of 17:30
