Five things traders need to know today

😷 US stocks ended Black Friday and Thanksgiving week around 2% lower on worries of Omicron, a new variant that was first detected in South Africa. European indices took a heavy hit after some EU nations confirmed the cases. Nikkei -3.34% and Australia’s ASX200 -2.46% for the week, while China’s benchmark closed higher.

⏬ WTI crude (SpotCrude) plunged more than 10% last week to $68.87 on Omicron uncertainty, breaking below the 200-day SMA. Brent (SpotBrent) -7.92%. OPEC+ is set to announce its production plan this Thursday. Gold fell for a second week to $1,791.40. Bitcoin traded around $56,000.

💵 The US dollar index (USDX) ended the week unchanged at 95.99 after giving up all the gains on Friday. The yield on 10-year Treasury fell below 1.50% as the expectation of rate hikes fades. Safe-haven JPY and CHF outperformed on the week.

🇪🇺 EUR rebounded from its 17-month low to 1.1313 as the dollar rally eased, correcting the oversold condition on the daily chart. The EU was experiencing a fourth wave of Covid even before the Omicron. GBP closed at 1.3333 near the yearly low.

🌏 Commodity currencies suffered most amid the risk-aversion mood. NZD(-2.63%), NOK(-1.82%), AUD(-1.65%) and CAD (-1.12%) led the decline last week. ZAR (South Africa currency) hit a one-year low against the dollar.

Five things traders need to know today

🙂 US stocks rebounded from Friday’s selloff as worries about the new Omicron Covid-19 variant eased. All 11 sub-sectors under S&P 500 were in red, with tech (+2.64%) leading the gains. Major European indices closed in positive territories.

↕️ Gold continued to struggle under $,1790 and Silver broke below $23. WTI crude (SpotCrude) climbed above $70 as OPEC+ is expected not to increase the output in near future. Bitcoin rose to $58,273.

💰 The US dollar index (USDX) regained 96 as the yield on 10-year Treasury closed above 1.50%. Markets have repriced the 2022 rate hike expectation amid Omicron uncertainty. Safe-haven JPY weakened against the greenback.

💶 EUR ended the day slightly lower at 1.1291 despite Germany November CPI beating estimates with 6%. Eurozone CPI is scheduled for release today. GBP dipped to 1.3314 near one-year low.

🌏 AUD (+0.37%) recovered from three-month low to 0.7141 as the market sentiment turned positive. NZD (+0.18%) ended higher at 0.6823, snapping a six-day losing streak. USDCAD eased to 1.2737.

*MODERNA CEO PREDICTS VACCINES TO STRUGGLE WITH OMICRON: FT risk getting hit on this

Dollar seeing gains on Powell commentary:

Fed’s Powell : Time To Retire The Word Transitory Regarding Inflation

Fed’s Powell : Test For Inflation Has Clearly Been Met

Three themes for the open

- Fed changes tune
- Vaccine effectiveness
- Risk off

https://www.ausbiz.com.au/media/three-themes-for-the-open-fed-changes-tune-risk-off-and-vaccine-effectiveness?videoId=17596

Three themes for the open

- Fed changes tune
- Vaccine effectiveness
- Risk off

https://www.ausbiz.com.au/media/three-themes-for-the-open-fed-changes-tune-risk-off-and-vaccine-effectiveness?videoId=17596

Five thing traders need to know today

😟 Global major stocks ended the last trading day of November sharply lower as FED chair Powell changed the tone of inflation and signalled a faster taper in December. S&P 500 -1.90% on the day and -0.83% for the month, with VIX jumping 67% in November. Omicron uncertainty also weighed on the sentiment. Apple +3.16% and Tesla +0.68%.

🔻 Gold fell to one-month low of $1,774.78 after Powell’s testimony. WTI crude (SpotCrude) tumbled 4.49% to $67.45 on worries of travel demand impacted by the new Covid variant, with Moderna questioning the vaccine efficacy. NatGas -5.6%. Bitcoin was lower at $57,142.

💲 The US dollar index (USDX) dropped to 95.81 on the weak economic data, while the yield on two-year Treasury surged to 0.57% (+17.01%). ADP and ISM PMI data is on radar today. Safe-haven JPY and CHF became the outperformers overnight.

🇪🇺 EUR extended the recovery to 1.1339 helped by stronger-than-expected Eurozone CPI number, despite more EU nations re-imposing Covid restrictions. GBP edged lower to 1.3301, having hit a fresh 11-month low in the session.

🙃 AUD ended the day lower at 0.7128. Aussie Q3 GDP is scheduled for release today. NZD was little changed at 0.6823. CAD was hit hard by lower crude prices and confirmed Omicron cases in Canada.

Nice graphic from Wells Fargo on potential scenarios of omicron and the implications for different markets