Wall Street began the holiday-shortened week lower in a quiet day of trade, with the S&P 500 down 0.6%, NASDAQ off 0.92%, while the Dow Jones hovered around flatline (-0.17%). NASDAQ weighed down by Nvidia, tumbling 4.4% ahead of its earnings report, while small-caps Russell 2000 fell 1.41%, erasing last week's gains. US Treasury yields edged lower with the yield curve steepening, with the spread between 10Y and 2Y US Treasury yields widening to -33.5 basis points. Among stocks, Walmart rose to a record high, up 3.2%, on positive forecasts and raising its annual dividend by 9%. Home Depot finished flat despite a disappointing 2024 outlook, while Capital One announced a $35.3bn all-stock deal to acquire Discover Financial Services (+12.6%).

ASX to fall. SPI Futures down 21 points (-0.28%).

• Base metals mixed. Nickel +0.82%, Zinc -0.69%, Lead +0.42%, and Tin -0.23%.
• Aluminium rose 1.07% despite LME inventories rising to a six-week high.
• Copper advanced 1.06% on a weaker dollar.
• Gold is up 0.40%, hitting a one-week high.
• Iron ore fell 1.07% hitting its lowest level in over three months, weighed down by demand outlook in China, despite China’s easing its 5-year loan prime rate.    
• 10Y Bond Yields – US 4.277%, Australia 4.187%, and Germany 2.378%.
• Aussie dollar up 0.18% to 65.49US cents, USD Index -0.21%, and Japanese Yen -0.05%.
• Oil prices slipped on demand concerns. WTI off 1.23%, and Brent Crude down -0.94%.

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