【TOP1 Morning】Tesla Hits a Record High, Stocks Flip Higher, Led by Tech Shares

Yesterday Market Review

Gold

Gold slipped as much as 1% on Thursday as the dollar firmed and progress in COVID-19 vaccine development boosted hopes of a faster economic rebound and tempered bets for an immediate U.S. coronavirus relief package.

The spot gold closed at $1865.29 per ounce; the volatility within the day is $1852.59-$1873.85.

The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 250,000

Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer said on Thursday that Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has agreed to resume COVID-19 relief talks as cases surge across the country.

An unexpected rise in new U.S. jobless claims also didn’t help gold.

“We’re having this clash of fear over the present COVID-19 conditions, and then we’ve the hope of the vaccines coming in a few months, so that’s kind of tugging the markets back and forth,” Kitco Metals senior analyst Jim Wyckoff said.

“Gold traders are now focusing on the next few months with the dark winter amid the pandemic that could impact consumer demand for gold.”

The silver closed at $23.955, the volatility within the day is $23.621-$24.358.

Forex

The dollar slid for a sixth straight session on Thursday, after trading higher for most of the day, on reports that U.S. Senate Republican leaders have agreed to resume negotiations on another coronavirus stimulus package.

The U.S. dollar index closed at 92.32; the volatility within the day is  92.23 - 92.72.

COVID-19 relief talks led to a bounce in stocks, pushed the euro to a session high versus the dollar, and pared losses in currencies that benefit from higher risk appetite, such as the Australian dollar and the Norwegian crown.

The EUR/USD rose 0.19% to 1.1875; the GBP/USD fell 0.09% to 1.3261; the USD/JPY fell 0.08% to 103.74; the USD/CAD fell 0.06% to 1.3073.

“The euro bottomed out against the dollar hours ago and technically when we got above $1.1850, the move higher accelerated,” said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Forex. “I think the market is relatively thin and when the Schumer news hit, it further opened the door. The market is still sensitive to news about the stimulus,” he added.

With fiscal stimulus plans remaining uncertain, speculation is growing that the Federal Reserve may further loosen monetary policy in December.

Stock Market

Stocks closed slightly higher on Thursday as traders increased their exposure to major tech names amid a rising number of coronavirus cases.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 44.81 points, or 0.15%, to close at 29,483.23. The S&P 500 rose 12.92 points, or 0.36%, to end at 3,580.71 while the Nasdaq Composite rose 103.11 points or  0.87% at 11,904.71.

Netflix and Amazon gained 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively. Alphabet rose 1%, and Microsoft closed higher by 0.6%. Apple rose 0.5% and Facebook ended the day up 0.4%.

Tesla stock reached an all-time high Thursday, briefly trading at $508.61 per share before closing at $499.27.

The company’s stock has been on a tear since the S&P Dow Jones Indices announced this week that it will include the carmaker to the benchmark index prior to trading on Monday, Dec. 21. Money managers with funds that track the S&P 500 will need to buy the stock for their portfolios.

“While we wait for clarity on a vaccine and additional fiscal stimulus, investors are really struggling to interpret the near-term impacts” of surging coronavirus cases, said Michael Arone, chief investment strategist at State Street Global Advisors. “What’s also been clear is technology stocks have become investors’ security blanket. When anxiety rises, they go back to the reliable growth of technology.”

“Negative COVID headlines/increased economic lockdowns (especially in NYC and L.A. County) are starting to offset vaccine optimism, and that’s weighing on stocks,” wrote Tom Essaye, founder of The Sevens Report. “We are now facing the biggest number of economic restrictions since the spring, and that will weigh on economic growth and, potentially, earnings.”

Crude Oil

Oil prices slipped on Thursday as hopes for a vaccine were overshadowed by a surge in new cases of the coronavirus around the world, which raised concerns about the outlook for crude demand.

West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $41.834, volatility within the day is $41.271-$42.149. International benchmark Brent crude closed at $44.241, volatility within the day is $43.888-$44.666.

“COVID is definitely weighing on the market,” said Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York. For crude oil, specifically, though, there’s a risk that a new OPEC price war could emerge, Yawger said. “I think they will come to an agreement, but 24 hours ago, it seemed like a done deal,” he said.

Focus Today

16:00(GMT+8): ECB President Lagarde Speech;

23:00(GMT+8): Euro Area Consumer Confidence Flash (NOV);