Morning Bid: Copper edges past silver to take gold

A look at the ?day ?ahead in European and ?global markets from Gregor Stuart Hunter

After a banner year for precious metals, industrial metals are in focus today as the prospect of more stimulus from China pushes ?Shanghai copper futures to a record high. 

As the U.S. ?dollar falls to a two-month low after ?this week's Fed rate cut and policy stance pushed back against the market's hawkish outlook, investors are turning to real assets to protect their purchasing power.

So-called dollar debasement trades had already lifted silver, which edged down 0.3% on Friday ?after hitting a fresh record of $64.31 the day earlier, while ?gold drew back from a seven-week high.

Stock markets in Asia posted gains even though AI bubble jitters undermined tech ?shares. Strength on Wall Street helped lift the MSCI Asia-Pacific ex-Japan Index 0.8%, while ?the Topix surged 1.5% to a record high, led by a 6.7% gain for Sumitomo Metal Mining.  

The tech sector was rattled by a ?13% decline in Oracle after weaker-than-expected revenue growth forecasts from the OpenAI cloud-computing partner.

Investors took some heart after Broadcom projected better-than-expected revenue. But the relief was brief as shares tumbled 5% in after-hours ?trading after the company said it expected a dip in quarterly margins. Nasdaq futures slipped slightly, while S&P 500 e-mini futures were flat.

Oil prices ?also found their footing, but the drivers were geopolitical rather than demand-centred. Brent futures rose 0.7% to $61.70 as renewed threats from U.S. President Trump of ?strikes on drug routes between the U.S. and Venezuela on land raised supply fears, as several sources told Reuters that the U.S. is preparing to intercept more tankers. 

In early European trade, pan-region futures, German DAX futures and FTSE futures were all up 0.4% apiece.

Key developments that could influence markets on Friday:

Economic data:

Germany: CPI and HICP for ?November

U.K.: GDP Estimate, Goods Trade Balance, and Industrial, Services and Manufacturing Output for October

France: CPI for November

Debt auctions:

U.K. 1-month, 3-month and 6-month government debt

(Reporting ?by Gregor Stuart HunterEditing by Shri Navaratnam)

Source: Reuters.