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Gold firms on stimulus bets, weak dollar

· Gold firmed on Thursday as the dollar fell and investors clung to hopes of an eventual breakthrough in negotiations over a fresh U.S. coronavirus aid package.

· Spot gold gained 0.4% to $1,838.83 per ounce. It earlier hit its highest since Nov. 23 at $1,843.80, but gave up gains following a lower-than-expected U.S. jobless claims number. U.S. gold futures settled up 0.6% at $1,841.10.

· U.S. lawmakers were unable to agree on a fresh relief package, but there were signs a $908 billion bipartisan proposal was gaining support as a negotiating tool. Joe Biden coming to power in Washington could lead to more stimulus, said Daniel Pavilonis, senior market strategist at RJO Futures.

But ultimately, “the gold market expected a lot more stimulus” than is currently being negotiated, he added, capping bullion’s upside.

· The expectations of a stimulus deal and continued optimism over COVID-19 vaccines kept the dollar index near a more than two-year low, buoying appeal for gold among investors holding other currencies.

· “Stimulus talks and further dollar weakening are lending more support to gold,” said StoneX analyst Rhona O’Connell in a note.

· Gold, considered a hedge against inflation and currency debasement, has risen about 21% this year, benefitting from near-zero interest rates and risks of higher inflation likely to result from the massive stimulus globally to ease the economic blow from the pandemic.

· Platinum hit a near eleven-month peak at $1,032 per ounce. It was last up 1% to $1,024.80.

· Platinum has consolidated above $1,000 on positive global growth sentiment, with initial targets extending towards $1,040 as exchange traded fund interest drives price action on the back of forecast deficits in 2021, MKS PAMP said in a note.

· Palladium fell 0.4% to $2,390.70 per ounce and silver was down 0.8% at $23.91.

· Jobless claims hit pandemic-era low as hiring continues even with rising Covid cases

New jobless-claim filings last week reached their lowest level of the pandemic crisis, providing a sign that hiring is continuing if at a slower pace.

First-time claims for unemployment benefits totaled 712,000 last week, compared with 787,000 a week earlier and the Dow Jones estimate of 780,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

That marked a decrease from the upwardly revised level of 787,000 a week earlier, a drop likely aided by counting issues associated with the Thanksgiving holiday.

The jobs market has demonstrated resilience even in the face of the new wave of Covid-19 cases. Claims are off their peak of 6.9 million in late March but remain well above the pre-pandemic record.

Continuing claims also fell sharply, dropping 569,000 to 5.52 million.

The claims data comes a day before the Labor Department releases its closely watched nonfarm payrolls report for November. Dow Jones estimates are for payroll growth of 440,000 and a decrease in the

· Pelosi and McConnell resume talks as Congress rushes to strike a Covid stimulus deal

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke Thursday for the first time since at least the 2020 election as Congress scrambles to strike a coronavirus stimulus deal and prevent a government shutdown.

The congressional leaders discussed their “shared commitment to completing an omnibus [spending bill] and COVID relief as soon as possible,” Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said in a tweet. They have signaled they want to resolve both thorny issues by Dec. 11, the last day of government funding.

· CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:

· California to impose regional stay-at-home order to ease Covid hospitalizations, governor say

The state will be split into five regions — the Bay Area, Greater Sacramento, Northern California, San Joaquin Valley and Southern California. If the remaining ICU capacity in a region falls below 15%, it will trigger a three-week stay-at-home order, Newsom said

· Pfizer shares fall on report company cut its Covid vaccine rollout target

Pfizer shares fell Thursday after a report said the U.S. drugmaker expects to ship half of the Covid-19 vaccines it originally planned for this year due to supply-chain problems.

The Wall Street Journal, citing a person directly involved in the development, said some early batches of the raw materials needed for the vaccine failed to meet standards. Pfizer now plans to ship 50 million vaccines by the end of the year, down from the original 100 million it had hoped to send out, according to the Journal.

The company has repeatedly said publicly that it planned to ship 50 million vaccine doses this year and up to 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021.

In a statement Thursday, it said it was “confident” it could hit that target.

Still, Pfizer shares fell more than 2% in intraday trading Thursday before closing down more than 1% after the report published. In extended trading, the stock, which has a market value of $223 billion, was down less than 1%.

The report also caused sparked a late-day sell-off in the broader market.

· EU envoys hope for a Brexit trade deal in days, UK sees progress

European Union diplomats said on Thursday they hoped a Brexit trade deal with Britain could be agreed by Friday or at the weekend, and EU officials said negotiators were likely to review progress in the next two days.

A British minister said he believed “good progress” was being made at talks but cautioned that London would not sign up to a deal that was not in its interest.

Three EU diplomats said they hoped the negotiators - the EU’s Michel Barnier and Britain’s David Frost - could seal a deal as soon as on Friday or at the weekend, signalling the next 24-48 hours will be crucial.

· Wisconsin Supreme Court won’t hear Trump election lawsuit

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday said it would not hear President Donald Trump’s latest legal attempt to challenge his loss to Joe Biden in the presidential election.

The Trump campaign’s lawsuit, which aimed to invalidate more than 221,000 ballots in the state’s two most Democrat-heavy counties, must first work its way through lower courts, the Wisconsin Supreme Court said in a 4-3 decision.

With the Electoral College set to cast their votes on Dec. 14 — thereby securing victory for Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris — lawyers for Trump’s campaign had argued that they didn’t have time to proceed through normal legal channels.

Reference: CNBC, Reuters, Wordometers