📰 Morning Brief: Black Friday sweeps risk assets, Nasdaq sinks 2.86% for its worst single-day drop since June; Gold tumbles 3.29%

Core Snapshot

· 📉 Risk assets were hammered on Black Friday. The Nasdaq fell 2.86% to 25437.00, marking its steepest one-day decline since June. The S&P 500 lost 1.82% and the Dow Jones slid 1.09%.

· 📊 Three Fed policymakers pushed for further rate hikes, arguing inflation remains too high. Bitcoin broke below the $77,000 threshold. Gold dropped 3.29% and silver slumped 5.93%.

I. Market Outlook

Key Events

- Black Friday selloff across risk assets: The Nasdaq closed down 2.86% at 25437.00, its worst daily performance since June. The S&P 500 fell 1.82% to 7580.07 and the Dow slipped 1.09% to 51770.31. Three Fed officials renewed hawkish calls for additional tightening, saying inflation has not cooled sufficiently. The 10-year Treasury yield retreated 6.4 bps to 4.925%, extending its losing streak to four straight weeks — the longest run in a year.

- Tanker explosions in the Strait of Hormuz: Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Navy reported four tankers caught fire and exploded while using an unauthorised shipping route, and said it sank a US unmanned vessel. Washington has yet to issue an immediate response. WTI crude rose 2.08% to $104.12/bbl, up 15.15% for October. Brent crude gained 2.40% to $117.64/bbl, with a monthly gain of 13.63%.

Exclusive View

Friday’s sharp selloff stemmed from a mix of hawkish Fed commentary and escalating geopolitical tension. The Nasdaq’s 2.86% drop reflected a sharp de-rating of tech stocks under pressure from higher-for-longer rates and regional conflict. Precious metals saw unusual liquidation: gold fell 3.29% and broke below $3,900, while silver plunged 5.93% for a monthly loss of 18.31%. The moves signal liquidity stress is forcing investors to offload traditional safe-haven assets. Binance suffered the largest hack in its history with $6.3bn drained from wallets. The incident poses a severe test of confidence across the crypto sector.

II. Overnight Markets

US Equities: Dow -1.09% at 51770.31; S&P 500 -1.82% at 7580.07; Nasdaq -2.86% at 25437.00.

European Equities: STOXX Europe 600 -0.36% at 646.75.

Fixed Income: 10-year US Treasury yield -6.4 bps at 4.925%, four consecutive weekly declines, the longest in one year.

Commodities: WTI Dec crude +2.08% at $104.12/bbl, weekly gain 0.82%, October gain 15.15%. Brent crude +2.40% at $117.64/bbl, weekly gain 0.79%, October gain 13.63%. COMEX gold -3.29% at $3885.7/oz, weekly loss 2.71%, October loss 6.49%. Silver -5.93% at $49.097/oz, weekly loss 8.66%, October loss 18.31%.

FX: EUR -0.18% to 1.1158, second straight monthly drop in October. GBP +0.12% at 1.3391. AUD +0.04% at 0.7030.

Crypto: Bitcoin dipped below $77,000 to 76979; Ethereum at 2236.

III. Macro Headlines

1. ⚠️ Iran Revolutionary Guard: Four tankers exploded in the Strait of Hormuz; a US unmanned boat was sunk after vessels took an unapproved passage. No immediate comment from the US.

Insight: Hostility is ratcheting higher. Sinking a US unmanned craft marks a direct military signal. Oil’s 15%+ October rally has already priced in substantial supply disruption risk.

2. 🏛️ Three Fed officials advocate more rate hikes, saying inflation remains elevated. The remarks contrast with the FOMC’s hold decision in October and expose open division within the committee.

3. 📊 Eurozone Q3 GDP rose 0.4%, beating forecasts. The region showed resilience amid expensive energy, though elevated borrowing costs and inflation cloud the outlook.

4. 🇯🇵 BoJ keeps policy rate at 1.25%. Ueda signalled further hikes remain possible this year, with ETF tapering to accelerate next year.

5. 🛢️ OPEC+ keeps December production targets unchanged, focus shifts to the 2027 output framework.

IV. Corporate News

1. 🤖 OpenAI cuts its latest fundraising target by $10bn. It now aims to raise roughly $20bn at a $1.25tn valuation. Funding conditions are tightening for leading AI firms.

2. 📉 Meta, Google and Intel briefly traded below their offer prices, leaving follow-on investors underwater. S&P revised Meta’s outlook to negative. Share placements have backfired as prices slide.

3. ⚠️ Binance hit by record hack with $6.3bn of assets stolen. The exchange suspended deposits and withdrawals and pledged to cover user losses. Trust in crypto infrastructure faces a major challenge.

V. Key Releases Today

· 🇪🇺 Eurozone Final October Manufacturing PMI

· 📊 US October ISM Manufacturing Index

· 📊 Apple and Palantir report after US close: focus on foldable iPhone screen issues and AI roadmap.