On Wednesday, Federal Reserve officials reiterated support for a moderate pace of interest rate cuts. Gold extended gains, while nonferrous metals saw a broad rally.
As of the latest update, spot gold in London traded at $4,341.89 per ounce, up 0.92%. Silver prices remained elevated, with London spot silver rising 3.53%, while COMEX silver surged 4.56%.
Nonferrous metals rallied across the board. Domestically, Shanghai tin futures jumped over 3%. Internationally, London copper, zinc, lead, and nickel all gained more than 1%.
Most night-session futures contracts in China advanced, with ferrous metals leading the gains. Coking coal climbed nearly 5%, coke rose over 3%, while iron ore, rebar, hot-rolled coil, and ferrosilicon each gained more than 1%.
U.S. stock indices opened mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 dipped.
Chinese stocks mostly traded higher, with the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index briefly climbing over 1%. Solar energy, consumer retail, semiconductor, and chemical stocks led the gains. Dingdong Maicai surged more than 17%, Canadian Solar jumped over 9%, and JinkoSolar advanced over 4%.
Among notable movers, Oracle (ORCL) opened sharply lower. Reports indicated that Blue Owl Capital, Oracle's largest data center partner, would not fund the software giant's next $10 billion data center project amid growing concerns over debt and AI-related expenditures.
On the policy front, Fed officials delivered key remarks. Christopher Waller, a leading candidate for the next Fed chair and current Fed governor, advocated for a measured approach to rate cuts.
Waller stated that the Fed still has room to ease policy given concerns over labor market weakness. He remarked, "I still believe we may be 50 to 100 basis points above the neutral rate. Given the current economic outlook, there’s no need to rush rate cuts. In an environment where inflation is likely to moderate, we can steadily bring rates down to neutral."
Regarding inflation, Waller noted that while it remains above target, he expects further declines in the coming months. He expressed confidence in stable inflation expectations and dismissed worries about renewed price pressures. "I believe inflation will come down," he said. Looking ahead, Waller projected economic improvement by 2026, hoping for positive spillovers into the job market.
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