Global Stock Markets Mostly Decline, Bitcoin Surges Over 4.6%

According to Zhitong Finance, on Friday, the three major indices fell as the Federal Reserve hinted that it was not in a hurry to continue cutting interest rates

The three major U.S. stock indices fell on Friday as the Federal Reserve hinted that it was not in a hurry to continue cutting interest rates, leading the market to reduce bets on a rate cut in December. All three major indices recorded declines this week, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1.24%, the S&P 500 down 2.08%, and the Nasdaq down 3.15%.

The Dow closed at 43,444.99 points, down 305.87 points or 0.70%. The Nasdaq closed at 18,680.12 points, down 427.53 points or 2.24%. The S&P 500 closed at 5,870.62 points, down 78.55 points or 1.32%.

Among individual stocks, Palantir (PLTR.US) rose 11% to reach a record closing high, as the company is set to be included in the Nasdaq.

European stocks were mixed on Friday. The German DAX 30 index fell 25.18 points, or 0.13%, to close at 19,217.55 points; the UK FTSE 100 index fell 6.95 points, or 0.09%, to close at 8,064.24 points; the French CAC 40 index fell 42.17 points, or 0.58%, to close at 7,269.63 points; the Euro Stoxx 50 index fell 38.18 points, or 0.79%, to close at 4,795.35 points; the Spanish IBEX 35 index rose 107.33 points, or 0.93%, to close at 11,631.63 points; the Italian FTSE MIB index fell 169.16 points, or 0.49%, to close at 34,189.00 points.

Asia-Pacific stock markets were mostly up on Friday. The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.28%, the Jakarta Composite Index in Indonesia fell 0.74%, and the KOSPI index in South Korea slightly declined.

Bitcoin rose over 4.6% on Friday, trading at $91,334.37 per coin. Ethereum rose over 1.6%, trading at $3,107.84 per coin.

Spot gold fell 0.12% on Friday to $2,561.72 per ounce, with a cumulative decline of 4.58% this week, marking the largest weekly drop since June 2021. During the week of June 18, 2021, it fell over 6.038% to $1,764.16. Fund managers' long positions in gold have dropped to a more than three-month low, as Donald Trump's decisive victory in the election reduced the demand for gold as a safe haven. Weekly data released by the U.S. government on Friday showed that as of November 12, hedge funds and other large speculators reduced their net long positions by 11% to 197,362, the lowest in 14 weeks. Gold has fallen about 8% from its record high set on October 31, with the decline accelerating after Donald Trump won the election last week.

U.S. WTI crude oil futures fell 2.4% on Friday, bringing the cumulative decline for the week to 7.4%. Concerns about oversupply in the crude oil market have put pressure on oil prices. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures for December delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $1.68, or 2.44%, closing at $67.02 per barrel, with a cumulative decline of 7.38% this week.

London metals were mixed on Friday, with copper down 0.61% and nickel down over 1.5%; aluminum rose over 5%, and zinc rose 0.44%.

U.S. October Retail Sales Exceed Expectations, but Economists Remain Cautious About the Report. U.S. October retail sales were better than expected, providing additional assurance about the health of American consumers as they enter the important holiday season. Scott Helfstein, head of investment strategy at Global X, believes that this data may be more relevant for the Federal Reserve and investors than the CPI released on Wednesday: "Given the slight softness in the labor market, consumer health