Macro Roundup (Dec 6)

SHANGHAI, Dec 6 (SMM) — This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last Friday night and what is expected today.

The dollar rose on Friday after the U.S. jobs report showed solid details that suggested the Fed’s plan to accelerate tapering of its asset purchases and to hike rates next year remained intact.

Sterling weakened on Friday as the potential for earlier Federal Reserve interest rate hikes strengthened the dollar, while there was still uncertainty about whether the Bank of England will lift rates this month.

BoE policymaker Michael Saunders, who voted for an interest rate hike in November, said on Friday he wanted more information about the impact of the new Omicron coronavirus variant before deciding how to vote this month.

Sterling fell 0.6% to $1.3218, close to its lowest level since December 2020 of $1.3194 hit on Tuesday.

In Wall Street, S&P 500 futures were higher even after a losing week on Wall Street as investors ditched equities amid concerns over the new omicron Covid variant and the Federal Reserve’s move to tighten policy.

Nasdaq stock futures were the underperformer on Sunday following a big drop in bitcoin over the weekend and as investors continued to rethink owning tech stocks with high valuations.

Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 163 points, or 0.5%. S&P 500 futures were 0.35% higher. Nasdaq 100 futures hovered around the flatline.

Crude prices ended little changed on Friday after erasing earlier big gains on growing worries that rising coronavirus cases and a new variant could reduce global oil demand.

Earlier in the day, oil prices climbed more than $2 a barrel after producer group OPEC+ said it could review its policy to hike output at short notice if a rising number of pandemic lockdowns chokes off demand.

Brent futures rose 21 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $69.88 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude ended 24 cents, or 0.4%, lower at $66.26.

Both benchmarks declined for a sixth week in a row for the first time since November 2018, and both remained in technically oversold territory for a sixth straight day for the first time since September 2020.

Gold prices rose nearly 1% on Friday as uncertainty sparked by the Omicron coronavirus variant and a dip in U.S. Treasury yields boosted the safe-haven metal’s appeal.

Spot gold was up 0.9% at $1,785.29 per ounce by 03:12 p.m. ET (2012 GMT). U.S. gold futures settled 1.2% higher at $1,783.90.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally closed down about 0.8%, having fluctuated either side of the flatline earlier in the day. For the week, the benchmark is down more than 1%.

Mining stocks led the losses on Friday, slumping 2.8%, as almost all sectors and major bourses dipped into negative territory.