The ASX 200 fell 5 points to 8309 as early gains melted away. Fed decision tonight. Banks were under pressure for a change with CBA down 0.9% and ANZ off 0.2% as the Big Bank Basket fell to $259.93 (0.6%). Insurers slid too with SUN off 1.7% and IAG falling 2.2%. REITs were generally firmer, GMG up again, Healthcare had a good day with CSL leading the charge higher on hopes of vaccines being unaffected in the US. Industrials were ok. TCL rising 1.9% and CPU up 1.8% with tech doing ok. WTC up 1.1% and the All-Tech Index up 0.8%. APA fell 2.4% in utilities following broker comments on Basslink miss. Resources were mixed, BHP and RIO flat, gold miners fell, WGX up % an exception. Uranium stocks slightly better, and oil and gas mixed. In corporate news, the IFL board rejected the Bain overtures, OBL rose 50.3% on a good deal with Ares. MSB will begin a Nasdaq listing next week. VUL rallied another 1.9% on further EU loan commitments. On the economic front, Dr Jim released MYEFO showing a $22bn budget blowout. In Asian markets, Japan down 0.5%, HK rose 0.7% and China up 0.5%. 10-year yields at 4.28%.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell for its first nine-day losing streak since the 1978. The 30-stock average shed 347 points, or 0.7%. The S&P 500 lost 0.5% , while the Nasdaq Composite ticked down 0.5%.

ASX SPI down 14. Waiting for Fed - NAB AGM today.

Commodities

• LME Copper prices fell to a two-week low, down 0.81%. Aluminium dropped 1% touching a one-month low over surplus concerns.
• Iron ore ended 0.24% lower in a range-bound trading session as markets weighed slowed shipments and weak demand from China.  
• Gold dropped 0.30% pressured by a stronger USD ahead of the Fed’s rate decision tomorrow.
• Lithium off 0.14%. Saudi Arabia plans a pilot program to extract lithium from Aramco's oilfield brine. Lithium Infinity will lead the project with Ma'aden and Aramco, Vice Minister Khalid al-Mudaifer announced.
• WTI eased 1.0% on demand worries following negative economic releases from Germany and China.

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 The ASX 200 kicked higher today by 65 points to 8314 (+0.8%) as the usual suspects rallied hard. The Big Bank Basket was up to $261.38 (+1.4%). CBA stood out, rising 1.6% MQG gained 1.0% with insurers doing well too. Financials generally attracting buyers, SQ2 up 1.6% and HMC up 3.0% in tandem with DGT bouncing back hard. REITs also back in demand ahead of the Fed this week, GMG up 1.7% and SCG rallying 1.2%. Industrials, too, moving firmly ahead, ALL up 1.9% with TCL up 2.1% and BXB extending its run up another 0.5%. Both COL and WOW were better with retail finding Xmas cheer, LOV up 2.3% actually, DMP up 1.0% and FLT better. Tech better, WTC up 1.1% and the All-Tech Index up 1.2%. Resources were mixed, iron ore stocks eased slightly, lithium still depressed, gold miners mixed with NEM off 0.5% and WGX up 4.3%. Energy stocks eased again with WDS down 1.0% and PDN off 2.0%. In corporate news, NVX gained 3.4% on a conditional loan from the US DoE. DTL fell 9.8% on a change in Microsoft incentives. KAR fell 9.7% on a shut in for the Bauna gas field in Brazil and APA fell 1.5% as the regulator rejected the Basslink conversion. SPG also returned to a listing after almost 20 years. Canned down 26.9% PPT fell 0.4% on the independent report failing to recommend the offer. Nothing on the economic front. Asian markets trending lower, HK down 0.4%, China up 0.6% with Japan down 0.1%. 10Y yields steady at 4.30%.

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The Nasdaq Composite rose to a record, aided by a rally in tech, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting. The tech-heavy index gained 1.24% to 20,173.89, while the S&P 500 added 0.38%, closing at 6,074.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed, losing 110.58 points, or 0.25%, to end at 43,717.48. The 30-stock Dow fell for an eighth day, marking its longest run of losses since 2018.

ASX SPI down 14 - WBC CFO Retires - Bitcoin hits US$106k

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ASX 200 slid 47 points to 8250 (0.6%) as banks remained solid and resources sunk. Iron ore stocks fell hard as Chinese retail data showed no real sign of a stimulus helping. BHP down 2.0% and FMG off 3.8%. Lithium stocks remain depressed, PLS off 3.1% and MIN falling 2.0%. Gold miners too under pressure as bullion comes off the boil. NEM down 3.6% with NST off 2.1% and VAU dropping 8.0%. Oil and gas eased with uranium stocks under pressure on a spot price downgrade from UBS. Banks help up with the Big Bank Basket solid at $257.88 (+0.3%). Insurers are also doing well, SUN up 0.8% and IAG up 1.2%. Other financials withered and died, ASX off 0.7% with HMC down 13.7% following DGT much lower. REITs fell, GMG down 1.8% with SGP down 1.0%. Tech eased back, WTC lost 1.8% with XRO down 0.3%, the All-Tech Index fell 1.0%. Retail was mixed, LOV up 0.5% and PMV down 1.8%. GYG dropped 3.6% with LNW down 1.9% too. In corporate news, not much around today. In economics, the RBA has been shaken up a little bit with two new appointments to the Interest rate-setting committee. Chinese data was lacklustre. Again. Asian markets drifted lower, Japan down 0.1% and China and HK falling 0.4% and 0.6% respectively. 10-year yields rose to 4.31%.

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Wall St ended near flat on Friday night, giving up early gains in a quiet session. The Dow dropped 86 points (-0.20%). Its seventh loss in a row was the longest stretch since 2020. Doesn’t reflect much about the US market, there’s only 30 stocks in the equal weighted index. The S&P 500 closed flat, while the NASDAQ outperformed gaining 0.12% (+0.8% at best). Supported by gains in chip stocks as Broadcom rallied 24.43%. Tipping the company’s valuation over $1 trillion, becoming the 10th public company to achieve the milestone. It predicted a massive expansion in demand for chips that power AI, expecting a $60bn-90bn AI revenue opportunity by 2027. More than four times the current size of the market. Other chip markets were mixed, Nivida down 2.2% and AMD lost 2.8%, while Marvell rose 10.8% and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained 3.4%. Treasury yields rose across the board. The US 10Y yield up 6.5bps, hitting a three-week high while the 2Y yield gained 5.2bps. Bitcoin rose 1.62% on Friday night and jumped another 1.3% over the weekend to $102,877. USD Index flat, and the Aussie dollar slipped 0.17% to 63.56US cents.

ASX set to fall. SPI futures down 39 points (0.47%).

COMMODITIES

• Copper output in Peru down 1.4% in October.
• LME stocks data supports copper, but dollar dominates.
• Gold slips, but set for weekly rise on potential US Fed rate cut.
• Oil up 2%, settles at 3-week high as more sanctions loom on Russia, Iran.
• UAE to cut oil shipments amid OPEC+ push for quota discipline, Bloomberg News reports.

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ASX 200 fell 34 points to 8300 (-0.4%) with a late rally saving some blushes. Down 1.5% for the week. Banks showed some resilience, with CBA attracting investor interest as a safe-haven option. The Big Bank Basketrose to $257.08 (+0.2%), with MQG up 0.3% with insurers easing slightly. REITs fell with NKOTB DGT falling 9.0% on debut. Not a great debut. Industrials were mixed, WOW up 0.3% and ALL rallying 1.2% as WES fell 1.3% and QAN dropped 1.2% on more industrial action. Resources fell significantly as iron ore prices dropped in Asia. BHP lost 1.5% with FMG continuing its wild ride down 3.7%. Gold miners sagged on lower bullion prices following the US PPI last night. Uranium stocks surged following the coalition's announcement of plans to establish seven nuclear power plants across the country. PDN up 4.7% and DYL rising 2.8%.  Oil and gas stocks better with WDS up 0.5%. In corporate news, IFL was on the receiving end of a NBIO from Bain at 400c, up 6.2%. S32 fell 1.1% on WA extending the Worsley alumina project. SDF fell 0.5% on some insider trading charges and TCL fell 0.9% on an update on NSW government negotiations. Nothing on the economic front locally. Asian markets eased despite Chinese stimulus talk. Japan down 1.0%, HK down 1.7% and China down 1.5%. 10-year yields back to 4.3%.

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 US equities pulled back overnight as hotter-than-expected US PPI data weighed on market sentiment. The Dow ended near session lows, down 234 points (-0.53%). Up 60 points at best. Down 245 points at worst. The NASDAQ fell back below 20,000 as tech stocks pulled back ahead of the Federal Reserves policy meeting next week and the S&P 500 lost 0.54%. On the economic front, US producer prices rose 0.4% MoM in November, the largest gain in five months. Annual PPI inflation accelerated to 3% from 2.6%. Core PPI rose 0.2% MoM, matching forecasts, with the annual core rate steady at 3.4%. Initial jobless claims in the US jumped to 242k in early December, up 17k from the prior week and above forecasts of 220k, the highest since October. US treasury yields rose following fresh economic data which confirms that the Fed will cut rates by 25bps next week. USD index up 0.28%, Bitcoin off 1.18%, and the AUD is flat. 

SPI down 55 points - Bid for IFL - DGT first day of school.

• WTI down 0.45% pressured by a forecast for ample supply in the oil market by the IEA.
• Copper fell 0.97% due to a firming USD. Nickel and aluminium found buyers, up 2.05% and 0.12%, respectively. Zinc, lead and tin are all down over 1.5% each.
• Gold slid 1.28% on profit-taking after the yellow metal hit a five-week high.
• Iron ore rebounded, up 1.0%, while Dalian fell 1.10% as markets wait for further clues on policy easing from a key economic meeting in China.

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ASX 200 falls another 23 points to 8330 (0.3%) after a solid opening was derailed by the 3.9% headline unemployment number. RBA will be back in its box. Banks slid with ANZ still under some pressure, the Big Bank Basket up to $256.62(). Insurers slightly higher as 10-year yields jumped higher to 4.26%. Industrials mixed with retail down, tech up and ‘old skool’ platform stocks easing back, REA down 2.4% and CAR off 1.3%. REITs under some pressure on higher rates. Resources were flat, iron ore miners mixed, lithium stocks tried to rally as PLS CEO bought 500k shares. Gold miners were still in demand, although muted, oil and gas stocks fell slightly, BPT jumped 9.9% on a broker upgrade. Uranium stocks mixed, PDN up 0.7%. In corporate news, SYR was dumped 28.3% on a force majeure in Mozambique, IPH rose 4.0% on buy back initiated. SPK jumped 3.1% on data centre sale news. ORA fell 1.7% as it completed the sale of its US business, and OML fell 3.8% as it outlined cost-cutting plans. VNT and DOW slumped on ACCC allegations of price fixing. In economic news, jobs data was far stronger than the economists had forecast at 3.9% with 36500 new roles created. RBA now back to a serious delay. In Asian markets, a strong day, Japan up 1.0%, China up 0.6% and HK up 1.7%.

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The tech-heavy index rose 1.77% to end at 20,034.89 and post an all-time high and a closing record. The broad market S&P 500 gained 0.82% to close at 6,084.19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the outlier, falling 99.27 points, or 0.22%, to 44,148.56.

November's CPI was in line with expectations. The reading showed a 0.3% rise from October and 2.7% increase from a year ago. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core CPI increased 0.3% on the month and 3.3% on an annual basis. Fed set to cut 25bps next week.

ASX SPI up 38  - Jobs number at 11.30am. Consensus +25k 4.1% headline rate - ORA sells US Business.

• WTI jumped 2.5% as EU sanctions on Russia's "shadow fleet" threaten supply. Brent crude up 2.2%.
• OPEC lowered its 2024 oil demand growth forecast for the fifth consecutive month, citing weaker Chinese demand. Growth is now expected at 1.61m bpd (-210k bpd).
• Chile projects 2025 copper output at 5.4–5.6m tons and prices at $4.2–$4.5/lb.
• LME copper fell 0.28% after touching a one-month high, as a stronger US dollar offset optimism over China's potential monetary easing.
• Gold rose 0.91% after inflation matched expectations.

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