Trading Activity May Remain Subdued As 2023 Winds Down

[ADVFN]( [[Global Email] World Daily Markets Bulletin]( Friday, 29 December 2023 11:24:27 [ADVFN Twitter]( [Monitor]( [Quote]( [Charts]( [News]( [Toplists]( [Boards]( Breaking: Price of Gold & Silver set to EXPLODE in 2023! Read Now... Attention investors and retirement savers...Investment experts and even mainstream news publications are predicting a windfall for gold and silver prices in 2023! This could be the year we see the value of precious metals like gold and silver EXPLODE! You won't want to miss out! [Reserve Your FREE Gold & Silver Kit Today!]( --------------------------------------------------------------- US Market Bitcoin [Bitcoin]( DAX [DAX]( Dow Jones [Dow Jones]( Nasdaq [Nasdaq]( The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Friday, with stocks likely to extend the lackluster performance seen in recent sessions. Trading activity is likely to remain subdued on the final trading day of 2023, which has turned out to be a particularly strong year for stocks. While the final trading days of the year are often seen as an opportunity for window dressing, traders have seemed somewhat reluctant to continue buying stocks following recent strength in the markets. The Dow ended Thursday?s trading at a new record closing high, while the S&P 500 is also on the verge of reaching new record levels. At the same time, traders have seemed hesitant to cash in on the recent gains amid concerns about missing out on further upside. Stocks turned in a lackluster performance during trading on Thursday, extending the choppy trading seen throughout much of the week. The major averages eventually ended the session narrowly mixed. While the Nasdaq edged down 4.04 points or less than a tenth of a percent to15,096.14, the Dow inched up 53.58 points or 0.1 percent to a new record closing high of 37,710.10 and the S&P 500 crept up 1.77 points or less than a tenth of a percent to a nearly two-year closing high of 4.783.35. The choppy trading on Wall Street came even after the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by more than expected in the week ended December 23rd. The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 218,000, an increase of 12,000 from the previous week's revised level of 206,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 210,000 from the 205,000 originally reported for the previous week. While the data added to optimism about the outlook for interest rates, traders remained reluctant to make significant moves going into the end of the year. The National Association of Realtors also released a report showing pending home sales were unexpectedly unchanged in the month of November. NAR said its pending home sales index stayed at 71.6 in November after tumbling by a revised 1.2 percent in October. Economists had expected pending home sales to jump by 1.0 percent compared to the 1.5 percent slump originally reported for the previous month. Trading activity may pick back up next week, as the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly jobs report next Friday. Reports on manufacturing and service sector activity may also attract attention along with the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting. Reflecting the lackluster performance by the broader markets, most of the major sectors showed only moves on the day. Gold stocks saw considerable weakness, however, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index tumbling by 2.5 percent after ending Wednesday's trading at a five-month closing high. The weakness among gold stocks came amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal. A steep drop by the price of crude oil also weighed on energy stocks, dragging the NYSE Arca Oil Index and the Philadelphia Oil Service Index down by 1.8 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you day trade? Trader Alerts streams stocks reaching new highs and lows as well as stocks breaking out of previous volume highs as they happen. It's a powerful tool for day trading ideas. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. Economic Reports CADUSD [CADUSD]( Oil [Oil]( Gold [Gold]( EURUSD [EURUSD]( MNI Indicators is scheduled to release its report on Chicago-area business activity in the month of December at 9:45 am ET. The Chicago business barometer is expected to dip to 51.0 in December from 55.8 in November, but a reading above 50 would still indicate growth. --------------------------------------------------------------- [3 Tiny Stocks Primed to Explode]( The world's greatest investor ? Warren Buffett ? has a simple formula for making big money in the markets. He buys up valuable assets when they are very cheap. For stock market investors that means buying up cheap small cap stocks like these with huge upside potential. We've set up an alert service to help smart investors take full advantage of the small cap stocks primed for big returns. [Click here for full details and to join for free.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Stocks in Focus Shares of Fisker (FSR) are moving sharply higher in pre-market trading after the electric vehicle maker said it grew deliveries by over 300 percent from the third quarter to the fourth quarter. Medical device maker Boston Scientific (BSX) may also move to the upside after announcing the initiation of a clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the FARAPULSE Pulsed Field Ablation System as a first-line treatment for persistent atrial fibrillation. Meanwhile, shares of Lyft (LYFT) may see initial strength after Nomura downgraded its rating on the rideshare company to Reduce from Neutral. Rival Uber Technologies (UBER) may also move to the downside after Nomura downgraded its rating on the company?s stock to Neutral from Buy. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Sell every Stock except ONE]( Markets are down... But Jeff Clark couldn't care less because he ignores almost every stock in the market except ONE. He lives financially free trading this One Stock Once per month... [Ticker Revealed.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Europe European stocks have edged higher on Friday and are set to post their best annual gains since 2021 on hopes that global central banks led by the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates next year. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.3 percent and the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent. Regional volumes remained light on the last trading day of the year, with investors looking ahead to the New Year holiday. On a light day on the economic front, data showed Spanish inflation held steady at the end of 2023. A preliminary reading showed the 12-month inflation rate fell to 3.1 percent in December from 3.2 percent in the period through November. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a full view of the market? Level 2 lets you see all of the orders to buy and sell shares, allowing you to see what is really going on in the market. If you don?t have this in your trading toolkit, you?re at a serious disadvantage. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Asia USDCAD [USDCAD]( USDEUR [USDEUR]( USDGBP [USDGBP]( USDJPY [USDJPY]( Asian stocks ended mixed in muted trading on Friday, the last trading session of 2023. The dollar looked set to end 2023 with a loss, keeping gold prices on track for their best year in three. Oil held steady in Asian trading after a 3 percent plunge in the previous session on demand concerns and easing supply worries. China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.7 percent to 2,974.93, extending gains from the previous session in a sign that investors may be eyeing a return to the battered market. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index finished marginally higher at 17,047.39 after a choppy session. The Shanghai Composite Index fell about 4 percent in 2023 and the Hang Seng lost about 15 percent. Japanese markets edged lower, with the Nikkei 225 Index dipping 0.2 percent to 33,464.17. The broader Topix Index inched up 0.2 percent to 2,366.39. The Nikkei average jumped 27 percent in 2023, marking its best annual gain in a decade, sparked by ultra-low interest rates and Warren Buffett's decision to invest billions of dollars into Japan. South Korean markets were closed for a holiday. Australian markets ended lower in the final session of 2023 after seeing a solid run in December with gains over 7 percent. The benchmark S&P ASX 200 Index slipped 0.3 percent to 7,590.80 as investors looked to book some year-end profits. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.3 percent lower at 7,829.50, dragged down by energy and material stocks. Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P NZX-50 Index ended marginally higher at 11,770.49. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you day trade? Trader Alerts streams stocks reaching new highs and lows as well as stocks breaking out of previous volume highs as they happen. It's a powerful tool for day trading ideas. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Crude oil futures are rising $0.32 to $72.09 a barrel after plunging $2.34 to $71.77 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after falling $9.60 to $2,083.50 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are sliding $8.60 to $2,074.90 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 141.66 yen versus the 141.41 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1051 compared to yesterday?s $1.1061. --------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this news bulletin or edit your mailing list settings click [here](. Registered Office/Accounts Dept: Suite 27, Essex Technology Centre, The Gable, Fyfield Road, Ongar, CM5 0GA. Customer Support +1 888-992-3836. Company registered in England and Wales: Number 2374988 VAT No. GB 549 2130 49