Day trading pre-market open December 11

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome and @Patterns.


Outlook for the day: Positive after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq end the week at fresh 2023 highs and iron ore, crude and most base metals rally.

ASX futures: up 16 points or 0.22%


Friday themes:

• Two of Wall Street's three major stock benchmarks close at 2023 highs as solid employment data soothes recession fears. The S&P 500 ends at its highest since March 2022. The Nasdaq's close is its strongest since April 2022.
• The US economy adds 199,000 jobs in November, beating expectations of an increase of around 180,000. The unemployment rate drops to 3.7% from 3.9%. Stocks shrug off a rally in treasury yields and a decline in gold as markets reassess the timing of the first rate cut next year. Futures pricing implies traders now expect the Fed to cut in May, two months later than the March start that had gained support in recent weeks.
• “As long as the soft landing outcome stays intact, the bias for stocks and risk assets remains positive” - Michael Arone, chief investment strategist at State Street Global Advisors (per CNBC).
• Market sentiment is boosted by a decline in inflation expectations and improvement in consumer sentiment. A University of Michigan survey shows the one-year outlook for inflation fell this month to 3.1% from 4.5% in November. Sentiment has lifted as fuel prices decline and the interest rate outlook improves. The university's consumer sentiment index climbs more than eight points to its highest since July.
• Boeing, Costco and FedEx are among companies hitting fresh highs for the year.
• Energy is the pick of the sectors, adding 1.12% as oil logs its first gain in six sessions. Brent crude bounces 2.4%. However, Friday's rise is not enough to avert a seventh straight losing week, the international benchmark's longest run of weekly losses since 2018. For the week, Brent declines 3.8%.
• Other sectors to see gains include: tech +0.9%, financials +0.5% and materials +0.33%. Drags include: consumer staples -0.65%, real estate -0.23% and utilities -0.22%.
• A recovery in Chinese exports helps lift iron ore, copper and other industrial metals. Exports out of China increase in November for the first time in six months as demand picked up. Dalian benchmark ore prices rise 2.39% on Friday for a weekly gain of more than 4%.

Key events this week:

• Speech by RBA Governor Bullock - Tuesday
• December consumer sentiment - Tuesday
• November business confidence - Tuesday
• US CPI (consumer inflation) - Tuesday
• US PPI (wholesale inflation) - Wednesday
• Federal Reserve rates decision - Wednesday
• November employment report - Thursday
• US November retail sales - Thursday
• Flash manufacturing/non-manufacturing PMIs - Friday
• China factory output, retail sales, etc - Friday
• US manufacturing/services PMIs - Friday

S&P 500: up 19 points or 0.41%

Dow: up 130 points or 0.36%

Nasdaq: up 64 points or 0.45%

Dollar: up 0.1% to 65.77 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): up 2.39% to US$135.01

Brent crude: up US$1.79 or 2.4% to US$75.84

Gold: down US$31.90 or 1.56% to US$2,014.50

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: down 1.45%

Bitcoin: down 0.43% to US$43,796

Copper (LME): up 1.28% to US$8,448.50

Nickel (LME): up 1.81% to US$16,806

Uranium: up 0.76% to US$83

Lithium carbonate (China spot): down1.66% to US$16,554

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: up 0.38%

BHP: down 0.37% (US); up 0.32% (UK)

Rio Tinto: down 0.38% (US); up 0.27% (UK)