Asia Markets Mixed, Europe Gains, Crude Oil At $72, While Gold Slides - Global Markets Today While US Was Sleeping

On Thursday, December 28th, the U.S. stock markets closed mixed, with the Nasdaq composite recording a slight decline.

In economic data, initial jobless claims rose to 218,000 in the week ending December 23rd, exceeding expectations. 

The trade deficit in goods widened to $90.3 billion in November. Wholesale inventories dipped slightly by 0.2% in November, while pending home sales remained unchanged, following a 1.2% decline in October.

In the S&P 500's 11 key sectors, utilities saw the biggest percentage increase. Meanwhile, energy stocks experienced the most significant decline, burdened by falling crude oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.14%, closing at 37,710.10. The S&P 500 rose by 0.04% to 4,783.35, and the Nasdaq Composite experienced a decline of 0.03%, ending the trading session at 15,095.14.

Asian Markets Today

• Japan's Nikkei 225 closed Friday's trading session lower by 0.45% at 33,464.17, led by losses in the Paper & Pulp, Rubber and Mining sectors.
• In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.31%, ending at 7,590.80, led by losses in the Gold, Energy and Resources sectors.
• China's Shanghai Composite increased 0.68% to 2,974.93, while the Shenzhen CSI 300 was up 0.49%, closing at 3,431.11.
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.21%, concluding the day at 17,023.00.

Eurozone at 06:00 AM ET

• The European STOXX 600 index was up 0.31%.
• Germany's DAX gained 0.29%.
• France's CAC was up 0.33%.
• The U.K's FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.20%.

Commodities at 06:00 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.56% at $72.17/bbl, and Brent was up 0.73% at $77.72/bbl.
• Natural Gas declined 0.43% to $2.546.
• Gold was trading lower by 0.39% at $2,075.35, Silver declined 1.75% to $23.945, and Copper slipped 0.28% to $3.9135.

US Futures at 06:00 AM ET            

Dow futures were up 0.07%, S&P 500 futures increased 0.07%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.13%.

Forex at 06:00 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.02% to 101.25, USD/JPY was up 0.22% to 141.69, and AUD/USD gained 0.38% to 1.4698.