U.S. Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg announced the U.S. will seek agreements with eight allied nations to strengthen supply chains for computer chips and critical minerals needed for AI technology. The initiative will commence on December 12 with a White House summit between the U.S. and counterparts from Japan, South Korea, U.K., Australia, Singapore, Netherlands, Isreal and UAE to reach agreements across the areas of energy, critical minerals, semiconductor manufacturing, AI infrastructure and transportation logistics.
In its ninth consecutive month in contractionary territory, the ISM Manufacturing PMI fell to 48.2 in November (vs. 49.0 est. & 48.7 in Oct.). Prices Paid Index rose to 58.5 (from 58.0 in Oct.) while New Orders fell to 47.4 (from 49.4) and Employment fell to 44.0 (from 46.0). ISM Business Committee Chair Timothy Fiore noted, “Prices growth accelerated slightly due to tariffs, causing new order placement backlogs, supplier delivery slowdowns and manufacturing inventory growth.”
Global bond markets slumped in reaction to unexpectedly hawkish comments from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda, who telegraphed the BOJ will begin considering the pros and cons of raising its policy rate. The two-year JGB yield rose 3bps to 1.02% (highest since ’08), 10-yr. yield rose 1bp to 1.88% (highest since ’08), 20-yr. yield rose 1.5bps to 2.905% (highest since ’99) and 30-yr. yield rose 2bps to 3.410% (highest on record).
