Market Snapshot: Commodities, Macro, Futures, and Indices

Index Update

US stocks closed lower Friday as rate cut hopes faded. S&P 500 fell 1.2%, Dow lost 290 pts, and Nasdaq dropped 1.9%. Powell's hawkish tone & strong retail data weighed on sentiment. Tech lagged (Nvidia -2.6%, Amazon -3.3%), while Tesla rose 1%. Pharma hit hard; Eli Lilly slid to a 14-week low

Macro Update

Chile's economy grew 2.3% YoY in Q3 2024 (vs. 1.6% in Q2), led by mining (+5.1%) & non-mining (+2%) sectors, despite an 8.5% drop in agriculture. Household & govt. spending rose, while investment fell. Exports climbed 6.4%. GDP grew 0.7% QoQ. Chinese stocks slipped Monday as the Shanghai Composite fell 0.21% and Shenzhen Component dropped 1.91%, despite new policy support urging listed firms to boost shareholder returns. Investors stayed cautious ahead of the LPR decision. Major losers: Seres (-5.1%), iFLYTEK (-8.9%)

Commodities Update

Silver surged above $30.50/oz as the dollar rally paused, driven by Fed policy uncertainty and escalating Ukraine tensions, while gold rebounded to near $2,600/oz, benefiting from renewed safe-haven demand. Oil rose to $71.4/bbl amid Russia-Ukraine conflict escalation, though concerns over weak Chinese demand and a global surplus capped gains. Investors now focus on Fed commentary and China’s LPR decision for market direction.

Futures Update

U.S. stock futures showed mixed moves early Monday as investors awaited Nvidia earnings and Fed commentary. Dow Futures fell 0.3%, S&P 500 Futures edged up 0.1%, and Nasdaq Futures rose 0.4%. Markets cooled after last week’s Fed warning on rate cuts.

After a period of correction throughout much of the session, stocks showed some recovery in the latter part of trading on Friday. The major indices slipped further into negative territory after oscillating around the unchanged line for most of the day. The Nasdaq fell by 502.54.07 points, or 2.40%, closing at 20394.13, while the S&P 500 dropped 78.53 points, or 1.32%, finishing at 5,870.63. From a technical perspective, the S&P 500 is currently near the upper end of a rising channel, suggesting that a consolidation phase may be on the horizon. Additionally, the 14-period Relative Strength Index (RSI) is reversing from overbought levels. Key levels to monitor include resistance at 6,065 and support at 5,800.