Between the Bells

Wall St kicked off the festive season with a slide in the first trading session of December, as a broad Cryptocurrency sell off dented general investor sentiment. Flagship currency Bitcoin slumped over 6% to below US$86,000, adding to the over 30% drop in price experienced over the last 2 months from highs of $125,000 in October. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, the Dow Jones lost 0.7%, and the Nasdaq shed 0.4%. 

It was a relatively stable day across the European markets, with the exception of Germany, where the DAX slid over 1% after monthly manufacturing data came in at a 9-month low, sparking a sell off. Asia saw a mixed day as the Chinese CSI and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 1.1% and 0.7% respectively, while the Japanese Nikkei slid 1.9%. 

Locally yesterday, the ASX 200 retreated 0.6%, with 8 of the 11 key sectors posting losses. The biggest story on the day however was a technical outage which prevented the ASX from publishing market-sensitive announcements for over 3 hours, causing around 80 companies to be put into a trading halt. 

What to watch today:

• The SPI futures indicate that the ASX 200 will edge slightly up, with a 0.07% gain at the open of trade today. 
• In commodities: 
  • Crude Oil prices are trading up another 1.5% at US$59.45, as Ukraine launched a fresh wave of Drone attacks on Russia denting the potential for peace talks, and OPEC announced its decision to leave output levels unchanged in Q1 2026.
  • Onto precious metals, gold has continued its recent rally and is now trading at a 6-week high US$4,240 per ounce. Meanwhile, Silver is trading just under 3% higher at US$58 per ounce, setting a fresh all-time high in the process. Today’s increase means that the silver price has now hit a 100% year-on-year rise, outpacing Gold. 
  • And finally Iron Ore prices have increased by 2% to just under US$107 per tonne, driven by Chinese demand and a weaker US dollar.

Trading ideas:

• And now we’ll end on some trading ideas for your consideration today. Bell Potter have maintained their Buy rating on healthcare equipment provider Paragon Care (ASX:PGC) with a target price of $0.49 per share, after the company announced the acquisition of Indonesian based provider Haju Medical – expanding their presence into overseas markets. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in South32 (ASX:S32), indicating that the price may rise from the close of $3.31 to the range of $3.95 to $4.05 over a period of 45 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis. 

Wall Street closed in the green on Friday, climbing to near record highs in a shorten session for Thanksgiving, with retail gains and as tech stocks recovered. However, global futures markets fluctuated on Friday following a CME outage, which is the world’s largest trading operator. This halted trading in stocks, bonds and commodities. The Dow Jones closed with a 0.6% gain, the S&P500 up 0.54% and the Nasdaq rebounded, closing 0.65% higher. 

European markets also ended the week in the green. All European markets closed just over 0.2% higher, and the STOXX600 advanced 0.25%. 

What to watch today:

• Following a strong end to the week across global markets, the SPI futures are suggesting our local market will rise 0.05% at the open this morning. 
• Keep watch of Metacash (ASX:MTS) share price movements today, with then wholesale distributor set to release its first half results for FY26. 
• In commodities, 
  • Crude oil is trading 1.35% higher at US$59.44 per barrel, however, has been pressured by oversupply concerns and posted a monthly loss. So, keep watch of ASX- listed energy producers. 
  • Gold is trading 1.4% higher at US$4,217.81 per ounce, reaching a fourth straight monthly gain markets priced a higher probability for a December Federal Reserve rate cut. 
  • And iron ore is trading steady at US$104.84. 
  • And AUD$1.00 is currently buying US$0.65. 

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter maintains their buy rating on HUB24 (ASX:HUB) and have lowered their price target from $135 to $125. At HUB’s current share price of $104.38, this implies 19.8% share price growth in a year. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in Ramelius Resources (ASX:RMS) indicating that the stock price may rise form the close of $3.66 to the range of $4.20 to $4.30 over 17 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis. 

After an impressive 83% of S&P500 companies beat their earnings forecasts, what is next for US equities? The US market has picked up steam again, spurred by strong Q3 results and solid performance in the high-flying AI sector, while financials also proved a standout performer. Bell Potter’s analysts share their views on where the rally is headed, their outlook for the medium term, and factors impacting the market to look out for.

In this week’s wrap, Sophia covers:

• (0:18): an overview of US third quarter earnings
• (1:05): how the AI sector is showing return on investment
• (1:57): Bell Potter’s outlook for the US market
• (2:20): how the local market performed this week
• (3:29): the most traded stocks and ETFs this week
• (4:04): economic news items to look out for next week.

Overnight in the US, Wall St posted its 4th consecutive day of gains, with all 3 of the major indexes closing in the green. The Dow Jones climbed 0.8%, the S&P500 climbed 0.9%, while the Nasdaq saw the biggest wins of the day, advancing 1%. The S&P500 and Dow Jones are both up around 3% this week, putting them on pace for their best weeks since late June, while the Nasdaq has advanced more than 4%, giving it its best week since mid May.

European markets saw similar gains – the pan European Stoxx600 index closed up over 1%, spurred by a 0.9% gain for the UK’s FTSE, a 1.1% gain for Germany’s DAX, and a 0.9% gain for the French CAC. And Asian markets too followed suit, with the Chinese CSI gaining 0.6%, Hong Kong’s Hang Send gaining 0.13%, and the Japanese Nikkei jumping 1.85%.

It was no different back home in Australia, as yesterday the ASX 200 closed up 0.81%, with 8 of the 11 key sectors posting gains. The market was trading up as high as 1.2%, however the release of hotter than expected CPI data dented the rally somewhat, as chances of the RBA lowering the cash rate become substantially slimmer.

The materials sector was once again in the lead, with big names BHP (ASX:BHP) and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) posting gains of over 1%.

In notable stock news, furniture maker Temple and Webster (ASX:TPW) shares plummeted 32% after the company reported results that were well short of expectations. 

What to watch today:

• Focusing on today, the SPI futures indicate that the ASX will continue its winning streak, predicting a 0.26% rise at the open of trade.
• Moving to commodities,
  • Crude Oil prices settled up 1.1% after they had hit their lowest point in a month in the previous session. It is currently trading at US$58.56 per barrel.
  • In precious metals, Gold is trading up 0.78% higher at US$4163 per ounce, while silver has jumped 3 and a half percent to US$53.62 per ounce, hitting a two week high.
  • And Iron ore once again remains mostly flat at $104.63 per tonne.

Trading ideas:

• Finally, we’ll end on some trading ideas for your consideration today. Bell Potter has maintained its Buy rating on almond grower and processor Select Harvests (ASX:SHV), and increased its 12 month price target to $5.80 per share, after the company reported an 18% increase in YoY revenue, and a 63% increase in operating EBITDA.
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in gambling company Tabcorp Holdings (ASX:TAH), indicating that the price may rise from the close of $0.92 per share to the range of $1.09 to $1.13 per share over a period of 18 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.

Starting in the US, Wall St maintained its rally as investors’ optimism for a further rate cut in December continues to grow. It is estimated that there is now around an 80% chance of a rate cut in December, sparking hopes for a continued rally into the final month of the year. The Dow Jones gained 1.43%, the S&P500 gained 0.94%, while the Nasdaq posted a 0.67% gain, as an all time high for Google parent company Alphabet was offset by a 2.6% drop for Nvidia. 

 Europe and Asia saw similar rallies, breaking the previous trends of volatility with a sea of green across the major indexes. In Europe, the UK’s FTSE, German DAX and French CAC posted gains of 0.78%, 0.97% and 0.83% - all contributing to the pan-European Stoxx 600 advancing 0.91%. And in Asia, the Chinese CSI advanced 0.95%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.69%, while the Japanese Nikkei edged 0.07% higher. 

Back locally, the ASX ended Tuesday’s trading session 0.14% in the green, with 5 of the 11 key sectors posting gains. Materials were the biggest winner, mainly driven by gold miners and iron ore producers which saw solid gains on the day. Some notable stocks include Northern Star (ASX:NST) which gained 1.98%, Newmont Corporation (ASX:NEM), which jumped 4.63% and Fortescue (ASX:FMG), which gained 2.74%. On the other end, it was another tough day for financials as the big banks saw losses extended – lead by CommBank (ASX:CBA) slipping 1.17%.

 In other stock news, DroneShield (ASX:DRO) ended its torrid run of late with a 14.61% surge on the day, after the company announced a new $5.2 million contract to supply an unnamed European military. 

What to watch today:

• Looking ahead, the SPI futures indicate the ASX will follow Wall St, predicting a 1.13% rise at the open of trade today. 
• Investors can also expect the release of the monthly CPI data at 11:30am Sydney time, which will provide further insight into the state of the Australian economy and may impact the share market. 
• Moving over to commodities:
  • Crude Oil has continued to slip with a further 1.43% decline in the price to US$58 per barrel, mainly driven by continuing uncertainty on the outcome of peace talks in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. 
  • Precious metals saw a stable day in terms of price, as Gold and Silver are both trading nearly flat at US$4130 and US$51.37 per ounce respectively. 
  • And it was a similar story for Iron Ore, which remains flat at US$104.50 per tonne.

Trading Ideas:

• Finally, we’ll end on some trading ideas for your consideration today. Bell Potter has maintained its Buy rating on electrical equipment provider IPD Group (ASX:IPG), after the company reported Q1 and Q2 FY2026 EBITDA and EBIT guidance exceeding consensus expectations, indicating a solid upwards trajectory. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in gold miner Ramelius Resources (ASX:RMS), indicating that the stock price may rise from the close of $3.56 to the range of $4.40 to $4.70 over a period of 27 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis. 

Starting in the US, overnight Wall St continued its rebound sparked by a revival of the AI trade, with gains primarily lead by Google parent company Alphabet. The S&P 500 increased by 1.59%, the Dow Jones gained 0.44%, while the Nasdaq jumped 2.69%, as other big tech names such as Broadcom, Palantir, AMD and Nvidia all followed Alphabet’s lead and posted gains. 

Across other international markets, it was a mixed bag of results. In Europe, the broad Stoxx 600 edged slightly up 0.14%, as a 0.64% gain in Germany’s DAX was offset by declines of 0.05% for the British FTSE, and 0.29% for the French CAC.

And in Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng posted gains of 1.97%, while the Chinese CSI fell 0.12%, and the Japanese Nikkei saw a 2.4% drop. 

Back home in Australia, the ASX 200 opened the trading week by advancing 1.29%, earning back some of the over 2.5% drop seen last week. 10 of the 11 key sectors posted gains, with the energy index the sole outlier. Notably the information technology sector, which has been hammered in recent trading sessions, saw a 2.39% advance, spurred by a 7.1% gain for Life 360 (ASX:360).

Fertility services provider Monash IVF (ASX:MVF) saw its share price skyrocket up 44% after it rejected a $312 million takeover offer, sparking optimism for the long-term valuation of the company. 

What to watch today:

• And now looking ahead to today, the SPI futures indicate that the recent rally will continue, predicting a 0.53% jump at the open of trade today. 
• Moving to commodities, Crude Oil is trading up 1.55% at USD58.96 per barrel, as investors react to increased bets of a US interest rate cut in December, and growing uncertainty over a peace deal in the Russia – Ukraine conflict. 
• In precious metals, both Gold and Silver are trading higher on the release of fresh economic data out of the US – Gold is up 1.73% to USD4132 per ounce, while Silver has jumped 2.7% to USD51.35 per ounce. 
• And Iron Ore remains nearly flat at USD104.42 per tonne. 

Trading Ideas:

• Finally, we’ll end on some trading ideas for your consideration today. Bell Potter have upgraded their recommendation on mineral assaying provider Chrysos Corporation (ASX:C79) from a hold to a buy, with a 12-month price target of $9.40 per share. This comes after the company posted a 54% increase in YoY revenue, and a strong pickup in adoption globally. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in GPT Group (ASX:GPT), indicating that the price may rise from the close of $5.68 per share to the range of $6.10 to $6.25 per share over a period of 55 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.

US equities ended the trading week with a strong rebound. All three industry benchmarks closed in the green on Friday. The Dow Jones up 1.08%, the S&P500 up 0.98% and the tech heavy Nasdaq up 0.88%. This rebound came after New York Federal Reserve President John Williams suggested the central bank could cut interest rates yet again this year.

European markets closed mixed amid global volatility. The German DAX was down 0.8% while France’s CAC was slightly higher, just 0.2%. The FTSE100 gained 0.13% while the STOXX600 ended 0.33% lower.

Locally the ASX200 ended the week down 2.52% and on Friday closed 1.59% after a touch week in Australian and US markets.

What to watch today:

• However following the US rebound, our local market is set to rise 1.09% at the open this morning, according to the SPI futures.
• Also on watch today will be the share price movements of Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) as the health imaging company holds its AGM and are set to provide a trading update.
• In commodities,
  • Crude oil has dropped 1.59%, to US$58.06 per barrel the lowest in one month, after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signaled a willingness to pursue peace talks, so keep watch of ASX listed energy producers today.
  • Gold is trading 0.3% lower at US$4,063.98 an ounce, as markets digested stronger US labour data, dovish central bank signals and softer US yields.
  • And iron ore is trading flat at U$104.26 per tonne.

Trading ideas:

• Bell Potter maintain a buy rating on WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC), noting the stock could offer more than 50% upside over the next year. They have lowered their price target to $100.00, stating that in FY26 they now forecast revenue and EBITDA of US$1.40bn and US$569m which is towards the lower end of the guidance range for the former and close to the middle for the latter. They see more risk at revenue than EBITDA this year, particularly with the greater-than-usual revenue skew to H2. At the current share price of $65.76 this implies 52.1% share price growth in a year.
• And Trading Central have identified a bearish signal in NexGen Energy (ASX:NXG) indicating that the price may fall from the close of $11.82 to the range of $9.10 to $9.60 over 22 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.

The ASX200 rebounded this week after Nvidia’s strong results eased fears of an AI-driven tech correction. Local wage data also helped steady sentiment, showing a cooler labour market without shifting rate expectations. Staples remain solid, while discretionary names are showing fresh momentum, prompting Bell Potter to rotate toward leaders like Woolworths (ASX:WOW), Endeavour (ASX:EDV), Bega Cheese (ASX:BGA) and Accent Group (ASX:AX1).

In this week’s wrap, Sophia covers:

• (0:10): what was behind the ASX’s slump
• (1:04): the impact of domestic economic data on the market trajectory
• (3:13): stocks Bell Potter’s analysts favour at the moment
• (4:09): how the local market performed this week
• (5:07): the most traded stocks and ETFs this week
• (5:36): economic news items to look out for next week.

In the US overnight, Wall St rebounded after a 4 day losing streak with all 3 major indexes closing in the green. The S&P 500 gained 0.5%, while the Dow Jones edged 0.1% higher, and the Nasdaq advanced 0.8%, driven by a new all time high for Google parent company Alphabet, as well as a 3% gain for Nvidia ahead of its pivotal earnings release this morning. 

Markets across Europe were mainly down – the broader European Stoxx 600 Index edged less than 0.1% down, while the German DAX fell 0.1%, the French CAC 0.2%, and the British FTSE was the biggest slider, shedding 0.47%.

In Asia, China’s CSI gained 0.44%, but the other major markets all slid, including Hong Kong’s Hang Seng retreating 0.38%, and Japan’s Nikkei losing 0.34%.

Locally yesterday, the ASX 200 extended Tuesday’s rout with a further 0.25% slide, dropping the index to its lowest point in 6 months. Strong gains in materials, which were lead by the gold miners, were offset by a tough day for financials, as major banks including CommBank (ASX:CBA), Westpac (ASX:WBC) and Macquarie (ASX:MQG) all slid more than 1%, while ANZ (ASX:ANZ) fell 2%. 

In other major stock news, popular defence pick DroneShield (ASX:DRO) continued its tumultuous run from the last few weeks after it was announced that its US chief executive Matt McCrann resigned effective immediately, prompting a further 19% loss. After hitting peaks of over $6.50 per share as recently as October, the stock closed trading at less than $2 per share yesterday.

What to watch today:

• The SPI futures indicate that the ASX will snap its losing streak and regain some of its recent losses, predicting a 0.63% jump at the open. 
• Over to commodities, Crude Oil has dropped over 2% to US$59.50 per barrel, after reports indicated that the US government is renewing its efforts to end the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. In theory, this would reduce supply risks to Russian oil, which in turn caused the price to drop.
• In precious metals, Gold is trading more or less flat at US$4074 per ounce, while silver has gained just over a percent and is trading at US$52.21 per ounce. 
• And Iron ore remains just about flat at US$104.26 per tonne. 

Trading ideas:

• Bell Potter has maintained its Buy rating on agricultural chemicals supplier Nufarm (ASX:NUF), and upgraded its 12-month target price from $3.55 per share to $3.60 per share, after the company reported FY25 underlying EBITDA slightly ahead of expectations, and upgraded its FY26 guidance. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in ResMed (ASX:RMD), indicating that the price may rise from the close of $37.98 per share, to the range of $43.50 to $44.75 per share over a period of 29 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis. 

Yesterday we saw another tough day in the markets across the board, continuing trends we have seen emerging so far this month. Starting in the US, it was another day of sliding for all 3 major indexes – The Dow Jones lost 1.07%, the Nasdaq lost 1.2%, while the S&P500 slid 0.8%, to mark its biggest losing streak since August. 

The pullback comes as 2 critical results come out later this week – Nvidia’s Q3 earnings, and the US September jobs report – demonstrating how overevaluation of the tech sector, and the more general state of the US economy remain the most important issues for investors at the moment. 

We saw similar results across Europe, with major declines across the major markets. The Stoxx600, French CAC, German DAX and British FTSE all slid more than 1% in overnight trade. Meanwhile in Asia, losses were more pronounced, as Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 1.7%, while the Japanese Nikkei recorded a 3.22% decline. 

And back home in Australia it was no different, as the ASX 200 fell just under 2% to record its second worst individual day of 2025, only behind Trump’s Liberation Day in April when sweeping tariffs were announced. All 11 key sectors posted losses, with materials and technology hit the hardest – the latter with a nearly 6% loss on the day. 

TechnologyOne (ASX:TNE), dragged down the technology sector the most, plummeting 17% after reporting revenue which fell short off expectations, and declining to provide FY26 guidance. In materials, Northern Star (ASX:NST) closed trading down 5.6%, as expectations of a US rate cut continue to shrink. 

What to watch today:

• Looking ahead to today’s trading, the ASX is set to extend yesterday’s losses, with the SPI futures predicting a 0.2% drop at the open. 
• In commodities, Crude Oil is trading 1.2% higher at 60.6USD per barrel, as US sanctions placed on Russia in October are beginning to curb their export volumes. 
• In precious metals, Gold is trading 0.5% higher at 4066USD per ounce, while Silver is up 1% at 50.7USD per ounce. 
• And Iron ore is trading nearly flat at 104USD per tonne. 

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter has maintained its Buy rating on testing, inspection and certification company ALS (ASX:ALQ), and raised its target price by 10% to $25 per share, after the company reported results that beat forecast, and upgraded its FY2026 guidance. 
• And Trading Central have identified a bearish signal on Westpac (ASX:WBC), indicating that the price may fall from the close of $37.87 per share, to the range of $34.60 to $35.20 per share over a period of 35 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.