Wall Street finished higher overnight near best levels, extending its rally while shrugging off warnings from Fed officials trying to rein in rate cut expectations. The Dow nabbed another all-time closing high, up 252 points (+0.68%). Dow up 257 at best. The S&P 500 rose 0.59% and is now within one percentage point of its all-time closing high. The NASDAQ 100 hit another all-time high, and the NASDAQ Composite advanced 0.66%. US small caps Russell 2000 rose 1.97%, rising over 11.7% in December so far. Bond yields dipped slightly despite Atlanta Fed President Bostic predicting the Fed would only cut rates twice in 2024, well below market expectations for at least five cuts. Among stocks, Boeing gained 1.2% after German airline Lufthansa revealed it ordered 40 737-8 MAX jets, Meta advanced 1.6%, trading at levels not seen since Sep-21, and Amgen rose 1.1% on broker upgrades.

ASX to open higher. SPI Futures up 35 points (+0.47%).

• Base metals finished broadly higher, with the exception of Aluminium, which fell 0.92% as LME aluminium inventories continue to rise. Nickel +1.40%, Zinc +1.61%, Lead +1.07%, and Tin +1.63%.
• Gold rose 0.63% as the US greenback and treasury yields slipped.
• Copper up 1.49%, as supply concerns fuelled by mine closures and a sliding dollar triggered buying.
• Dalian iron ore up 0.10% despite dampening demand, buoyed by low inventory levels and restocking.
• 10Y bond yields – US 3.929%, Australia 4.090% and Germany 2.022%.
• USD Index fell 0.40%, and the AUD rose 0.82% to 67.6US cents.

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