HK, US stocks top stories

New York silver futures rose 4.4%, reaching a historic high, approaching $72, while spot platinum surged over 7%, continuously closing in on the all-time high set in 2008

On Tuesday (December 23), at the New York close, spot silver rose by 3.50%, reaching a historic high of $71.5784 per ounce. COMEX silver futures increased by 4.40%, reported at $71.585 per ounce. COMEX copper futures rose by 1.18%, reported at $5.5670 per pound. Spot platinum increased by 7.46%, reported at $2289.54 per ounce, approaching the historical high of $2300.00 from 2008; spot palladium rose by 4.43%, reported at $1857.46 per ounce

Gold and silver hit new historical highs, poised to achieve the largest annual increase since 1979, with two major drivers at work

On Tuesday, spot silver rose by 2.4% at one point, breaking through $70 per ounce for the first time, while spot gold approached the $4,500 mark. Driven by escalating geopolitical tensions and expectations of further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, gold prices have increased by more than two-thirds this year, and silver prices have risen by about 140% year-to-date, showing an even more vigorous upward trend

The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index preliminarily closed down 0.5%. Among popular Chinese concept stocks, Pony AI preliminarily closed down 2.9%, Nio fell 2.5%, Tencent, Li Auto, XPeng, Xiaomi, and WeRide all dropped over 1%, while Alibaba, Pinduoduo, and New Oriental rose over 0.1%

Federal Reserve Chair candidate Hassett: The pace of interest rate cuts in the U.S. lags far behind other central banks

Hassett stated that the strong GDP data is "an excellent Christmas gift for the American people"; of the 4.3% GDP growth in the third quarter of the U.S., 1.5 percentage points can be attributed to Trump's tariff policy, which reduced the U.S. trade deficit; if the GDP growth remains at 4% in the new year, monthly job growth will return to the range of 100,000 to 150,000

The Japanese yen rose over 0.5%, briefly breaking 156 before the release of U.S. GDP data

On Tuesday (December 23), at the New York close, the US dollar fell 0.52% against the Japanese yen, reported at 156.24 yen. Before the release of the US GDP data, the US dollar against the Japanese yen briefly broke through 156. The euro fell 0.26% against the Japanese yen, reported at 184.21 yen; the British pound fell 0.26% against the Japanese yen, reported at 210.870 yen

The two-year U.S. Treasury yield rose by more than 2 basis points, as data such as U.S. GDP brought about a wave of low-level rebound

On Tuesday (December 23), U.S. Treasury yields fluctuated at the New York close. The 10-year Treasury yield rose by 0.39 basis points to 4.1667%, significantly rebounding after the release of U.S. GDP and durable goods orders data. The 2-year Treasury yield increased by 2.13 basis points to 3.5280%. The 5-year Treasury yield rose by 2.29 basis points to 3.7356%. The 30-year Treasury yield fell by 1.02 basis points to 4.8272%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) decreased by 0.81 basis points to 1.9037%, while the 2-year TIPS yield increased by 3.85 basis points to 1.2040%

On Tuesday (December 23), at the New York close, the ICE Dollar Index fell by 0.34% to 97.955 points, and the Bloomberg Dollar Index fell by 0.34% to 1201.76 points

Trump sets necessary conditions: Dare to cut interest rates, "I can never become the Federal Reserve Chairman if I disagree"

Trump posted that he hopes the next Federal Reserve chairman to replace Powell will lower interest rates when the economy and markets are performing well, rather than "killing the market" early due to inflation concerns. He criticized the current market logic, which has turned into "good news is actually bad for the stock market," emphasizing that low interest rates help drive stock market gains, boost the economy, and improve housing affordability, stating that a rising stock market could push the U.S. GDP to grow by 10, 15, or even 20 percent or more in a year

France's 10/30-year government financing costs have significantly decreased as investors weigh the budget situation and U.S. economic data

The yields on France's 10-year and 30-year government bonds have significantly decreased as investors weigh the budget situation and U.S. economic data. The French Parliament approved a temporary spending bill to avoid a government shutdown. The yields on 10-year government bonds in Italy, Spain, and Greece have also declined

On Tuesday, in the European market's late trading session, German government bond yields fluctuated due to the release of U.S. GDP and durable goods orders data. The 10-year yield fell by 3.6 basis points to 2.861%, the 2-year yield dropped by 0.6 basis points to 2.142%, and the 30-year yield decreased by 4.4 basis points to 3.488%. The 2/10 year yield spread fell by 3.025 basis points to 71.722 basis points

The medium- to long-term UK bond yields fell by about 3 basis points, retreating after a spike following the release of US GDP and other data

The yield on UK medium to long-term government bonds fell on Tuesday's close, with the 10-year yield dropping to 4.491%, the 2-year yield to 3.716%, the 30-year yield to 5.238%, and the 50-year yield to 4.733%. The yields rebounded after the release of US GDP and durable goods orders data

Goldman Sachs top traders year-end review: historic highs for gold, silver, and copper, increasing divergence between stocks and bonds, and "structural differentiation" in the US stock market

Goldman Sachs trader Pasquariello pointed out in the year-end review that the market in 2025 will exhibit three major characteristics: first, an epic bull market in precious metals, with gold and silver achieving their best performance since 1979; second, a rare divergence in the stock and bond markets, with the stock market pricing in an accelerating economy while the bond market remains cautious, leading to a high level of contradictory signals; third, continued internal differentiation in the U.S. stock market, with technology stocks strengthening their advantage over small-cap stocks, as the market progresses with low volatility and high dispersion. Overall, the market is entering 2026 amid structural contradictions and new highs in asset prices

JD.com responds to "warehouse theft": The Paris warehouse in France has resumed normal operations

JD.com responded to the theft incident at its Paris warehouse, stating that the warehouse has resumed normal operations and that the actual losses differ significantly from the disclosed data. Previous reports indicated that over 50,000 units of 3C digital devices were stolen from the JD.com warehouse, valued at approximately 37 million euros. JD.com stated that it will continue to promote its global network plan and provide high-quality logistics services

Bessenet: Suggests that the Federal Reserve modify the 2% inflation target to a range of 1.5%-2.5% or 1%-3%

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen suggested re-evaluating the Federal Reserve's inflation target after the inflation rate falls to 2%, considering adjusting it to a range of 1.5%-2.5% or 1%-3%. She pointed out that public concerns about the cost of living are related to high prices during the Biden administration