Pre-Market Report – Wednesday 11 December: US markets slip ahead of CPI | AUD falls as RBA turns turtle-dovish

US equities closed in the red overnight ahead of inflation data tomorrow. The Dow lost 154 points (-0.35%). Up 69 points at best. Down 215 points at worst. The S&P 500 pushed further away from recent all-time highs, down 0.30% and the NASDAQ eased 0.25%. NFIB Small Business Optimism Index jumped to 101.7 in November, its highest since June 2021. Small caps Russell 2000 ignored the positive economic data, falling 0.42% while the VIX edged 1.93% higher. US treasuries rose while Aussie bonds and the AUD fell hard, down nearly 1% at 68.78US cents.

US CPI tomorrow. SPI down 27 - AUD drops on Turtle Dovish RBA - Gold hits near record AUD highs.

• The EIA forecasts US net crude oil imports to drop 20% in 2025 to 1.9m bpd, the lowest since 1971, driven by increased domestic production and reduced refinery demand.
• WTI up 0.29% on rising demand from China after reports of “appropriately loose” monetary policy in 2025 and a possible tight supply in Europe this coming winter. Brent Crude up 0.10%.
• Gold up 1.24% hitting a two-week high, supported by rising geopolitical tensions.
• Codelco reported flat copper production of 127,900 tons in October, matching last year, while Escondida's output surged over 20%, per Cochilco data.
• LME Copper dipped 0.16%, pressured by a slowdown in China’s export growth. While nickel dropped 1.19% from an oversupply in the market.
• Uranium fell 0.26%, iron ore down too, off 0.14%, and lithium rose 0.20%.

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