Morning Note: A round-up of the latest market news.
Market News
Brent Crude has risen 2% to $63.70 a barrel as OPEC+ sticks with plans to pause output hikes in early 2026. The group confirmed the three-month halt as it grapples with uneven demand trends and what it views as a potential oversupply next year. Traders also assessed fresh geopolitical risks after President Trump escalated his rhetoric against Venezuela, warning that the country’s airspace should be considered “closed,” a threat he later softened.
10-year Treasury yields ticked up to 4.04%. Gold continued its recent recovery and currently trades at $4,240 an ounce, while silver jumped to a record high of almost $58 an ounce on supply concerns, before easing somewhat. Copper touched a 4-month high.
US equities enjoyed their strongest week since June, although the futures market is currently predicting a 0.5% decline at the open this afternoon. Black Friday sales climbed 4.1%, a sign US consumer are continuing to spend despite persistent economic concerns.
Asia Pacific markets kicked off the new month on a mixed note. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 (-1.9%) underperformed following hawkish-leaning remarks from Governor Ueda. The yen strengthened and the 2-year JGB yield rose to its highest since 2008. Elsewhere, the Hang Seng (+0.5%) and Shanghai Composite (+0.7%) enjoyed modest gains.
The FTSE 100 is currently little changed at 9,704, while Sterling trades at $1.3215 and €1.1370. In the infrastructure space, HICL Infrastructure has withdrawn from its proposed combination with The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (TRIG). Airbus said fewer than 100 A320 planes still need a software fix after it modified most of the jets over the weekend.
Bitcoin slipped 4% and is currently trading below $87k. Chinese crypto stocks fell after its central bank warned against speculation.
Source: Bloomberg
