It has been a good week for industrial metals, with prices rising on the back of data showing relatively stable industrial activity and solid growth in investment spending in China. The Fed’s rate hike on Wednesday had been widely anticipated and there was only a muted reaction in commodities markets. Indeed, gold actually rose on the news, encouraged by the fact that the Fed did not change its interest rate and inflation projections.
Turning to next week, it is relatively quiet on the data front and markets could be thinly traded in the run up to the Christmas and New Year holidays. China’s Central Economic Work Conference, where the leadership sets out its priorities for 2018, starts on Monday but we are unlikely to learn much that is new.
Become a client to read more
This is premium content that requires an active Capital Economics subscription to view.
Already have an account?
You may already have access to this premium content as part of a paid subscription.
Sign in to read the content in full or get details of how you can access it
Register for free
Sign up for a free account to gain:
- Unlock additional content
- Register for Capital Economics events
- Receive email updates and economist-curated newsletters
- Request a free trial of our services