Copper prices rose on Friday as the dollar stabilized against most major rivals, while markets assess the latest data and events.

US President-elect Trump is expected to choose Marco Rubio as foreign secretary according to Reuters sources, which would be the most hawkish choice for China and Israel policies. 

Trump remains steadfast on his trade policies, which include heavy tariffs on Chinese and European products, which could cause inflationary pressures on the economy. 

A stronger dollar in recent data has also weighed on minerals prices, after the greenback index hit four-month highs on Trump trade and momentum.

Earlier government data showed US retail sales  rose 0.4% m/m to $718.9 billion in October, slowing down from 0.8% in September. 

On a yearly basis, US retail sales rose 2.8% last month, same as the 2023 period. 

US unemployment claims fell slightly to 217 thousand in the week ending November 9, down from 221 thousand in the previous reading, and below expectations of 224 thousand.

Data released yesterday showed US consumer prices rose 2.6% y/y in October as expected, after slowing down to 2.4% in September.

Core prices, excluding food and energy, rose 3.3% y/y, same as September.

Otherwise, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday that strong US growth will allow Fed members to slow down the pace of interest rate cuts.

Powell described the current US economic growth as the best among all major economies, despite last month’s disappointing jobs growth, which was due to hurricanes and labor strikes. 

On inflation, Powell said it’ll approach the 2% target despite some challenges.

On trading, the dollar index was little changed at 106.6 as of 14:22 GMT, with a session-high at 106.9, and a low at 106.3.

Copper December futures rose 0.1% as of 16:04 GMT in American trade to $4.14 a pound.

Oil prices lost ground on Friday amid concerns about a supply glut after a sharp drawdown in US gasoline stocks. 

The Energy Information Administration reported a buildup of 2.1 million barrels in US crude stocks last week to a total of 429.7 million barrels, while analysts expected a build of 1.1 million barrels.

Gasoline stocks fell by 4.4 million barrels to a total of 206.9 million barrels, while distillate stocks fell by 1.4 million barrels to 114.4 million barrels. 

The EIA also reported an increase of oil demand by 1.8 million bpd to 21.6 million bpd, with refinery input rising by 175 thousand bpd compared to the previous week’s average. 

On trading, Brent futures fell 1%, or 69 cents as of 13:58 GMT to $71.87 a barrel.

US crude futures fell 1%, or 68 cents to $68.01 a barrel.

Brent is heading for a weekly loss of 2.2%, while US West Texas is heading for a 2.7% drop.

Most cryptocurrencies fell on Friday on profit-taking after a recent record run following Donald Trump’s stunning US election victory. 

Coinmarketcap data showed total crypto market trading fell by 26.47% to $221.25 billion, while the market value fell by 3.63% to $2.9 trillion.

Nearly $400.67 million exited US bitcoin exchange funds yesterday after attracting nearly $4.73 billion in the previous six days, according to SoSoValue data.

Trump vowed during his campaign to make the US the world’s crypto capital, and to replace the head of the SEC, who is famous for his hardline position on crypto regulation.

Otherwise, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday that strong US growth will allow Fed members to slow down the pace of interest rate cuts.

Powell described the current US economic growth as the best among all major economies, despite last month’s disappointing jobs growth, which was due to hurricanes and labor strikes. 

On inflation, Powell said it’ll approach the 2% target despite some challenges.

Bitcoin

On trading, bitcoin fell 1.1% on Coinmarketcap to $89.8 thousand as of 14:10 GMT.

The New York Federal Reserve reported a rise in the Empire State Manufacturing Index in November by 43.1 points to 31.2 points, the highest level since December 2021.