Markets Overview
- ASX SPI 200 futures up 0.2% to 8,456.00
- Dow Average down 0.3% to 44,734.74
- Aussie up 0.3% to 0.6496 per US$
- US 10-year yield fell 6.2bps to 4.2440%
- Australia 3-year bond yield fell 2.1 bps to 3.97%
- Australia 10-year bond yield fell 2.9 bps to 4.42%
- Gold spot little changed at $2,634.87
- Brent futures up 0.1% to $72.90/bbl
Economic Events
- 10:30: (AU) Australia to Sell A$1 Billion 91-Day Bills
- 10:30: (AU) Australia to Sell A$1 Billion 133-Day Bills
- 11:30: (AU) 3Q Private Capital Expenditure, est. 1.0%, prior -2.2%
- 11:30: (AU) SURVEY: Private Capital Expenditure 2024-25 A$181b
A selloff in giant technology companies dragged down stocks, while the latest economic data gave support to the Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on rate cuts.
Equities halted a seven-day rally that drove the S&P 500 to all-time highs. A Bloomberg gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps slid about 1%. Dell Technologies Inc. and HP Inc. tumbled at least 11% after their results disappointed investors. The US Federal Trade Commission has opened an antitrust investigation of Microsoft Corp., drilling into everything from the company’s cloud computing and software licensing businesses to cybersecurity offerings and artificial intelligence products.
“It’s beginning to look a lot like ‘tech mess’,” said Jonathan Krinsky at BTIG. “The relative breakdown in tech is a concern heading into 2025, although the good news so far is rotation into other parts of the market keeps the broadening trade alive.”
In a thin trading session ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, data showed the Fed’s preferred measure of underlying inflation picked up. While in-line with estimates, the core personal consumption expenditures climbed 2.8% from October last year. Separate figures showed the economy expanded at a solid pace.
The data support recent comments by many Fed officials that there’s no rush to cut rates as long as the labor market remains healthy and the US continues to power ahead. To Bret Kenwell at eToro, overall inflation has been moving in the desired direction, but a lack of further follow-through could force investors to reassess bets on future rate cuts.
“The last mile towards price stability has been stymied by still ‘sticky’ inflation and bumps along road,” said Quincy Krosby at LPL Financial.
The S&P 500 dropped 0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 slid 0.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%.
Treasury 10-year yields declined six basis points to 4.25%. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index slipped 0.7%. Bitcoin rallied.
