Wall St Futures Steady As Dec Rate Cut Bets Increase; PCE Data Awaited

President Donald Trump offered support to FBI Director Kash Patel on Tuesday, after news outlet MS NOW reported that Trump was considering ousting Patel from his current role.

"He is doing a great job I think," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One when asked about the report.

The White House earlier denied that Trump was considering removing Patel.

MS NOW, citing three unidentified people with knowledge of the situation, said in an online report that Trump and his top aides had grown increasingly frustrated by the unflattering headlines Patel has generated.

They have confided to allies that Trump is weighing removing Patel and considering Andrew Bailey, the FBI's co-deputy director, as his replacement, according to MS NOW, formerly MSNBC.

FBI directors by law are appointed to 10-year terms as a means of insulating the bureau from politics, and are subject to confirmation by the Senate.

Patel, a Trump loyalist who during the president's first term advised both the director of national intelligence and the secretary of defense, has previously called for stripping the FBI of its intelligence-gathering role and purging its ranks of any employee who refuses to support Trump's agenda.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on X that the MS NOW story was "completely made up." She posted a photo of Trump and Patel that she said was taken in the Oval Office on Tuesday.

Leavitt said Trump and Patel were in a meeting when the report was published, and the president reacted to it by laughing and saying, "What? That's totally false. Come on Kash, let's take a picture to show them you're doing a great job!"

MS NOW said it stood behind its reporting.

More than 200 people have been fired from the Justice Department, of which the FBI is a part, since Trump took office for his second term in January. Of those, dozens worked on criminal cases related to Trump or his allies.

Source: Reuters

Silver (XAG/USD) has stalled its gigantic rally higher as a more hawkish Fed pricing and lower economic projections have effectively brought a top to the precious industrial metal.

After forming a clear double top at its all-time highs of $54.50, Silver retraced lower to just graze below the psychological $50 mark.

Still, the metal's resilience to correct lower suggests that the underlying dovish catalysts haven't entirely disappeared.

NY Fed President John Williams recently revived hopes for a 25 basis point cut, pushing the odds for the December meeting back up to around 70%.

This pricing was further consolidated by a raft of weak data released this morning: PPI came in at 2.7% (matching expectations), while both Retail Sales and the ADP Private Employment report surprised to the downside.

Hence, the prospect of gradual rate easing—a fundamental booster for commodities like Silver—keeps underpinning prices even as sellers try to push lower.

Marking a recent low at $48.65 but also failing to breach the $52 level, a range is gradually forming.

Let's look at it through a multi-timeframe analysis of the metal.

Silver (XAG/USD) Multi-timeframe Technical Analysis

Daily Chart

Silver (XAG/USD) Daily Chart, November 25, 2025 – Source: TradingView

After yesterday's strong rebound back above the $50 mark, buyer hesitancy and another failed test of the $52.00 level proves how weak directional attempts are.

This is characteristic of a Thanksgiving week, when many traders are absent and leads to lower odds of trending-environment (Who will be there to push prices?).

When looking at the past few weeks of action, the up-down action forms typical signs of a range.

It also gets confirmed further when looking at the long wicks, and a flattening RSI right around the neutral zone.

Let's dive into shorter timeframe to spot more details on how to exploit this range.

4H Chart and Technical Levels

Silver (XAG/USD) 4H Chart, November 25, 2025 – Source: TradingView

Levels to watch for Silver (XAG) trading:

Resistance Levels:

Support Levels:

1H Chart

Silver (XAG/USD) 1H Chart, November 25, 2025 – Source: TradingView

The current $48.00 to $52.00 range has found root in more troubles fundamentals as time comes:

Is the Fed lowering rates enough to fuel another All-time high rally?

Are ongoing geopolitical reconciliations enough to lower demand and bring prices down?

As traders and participants scratch their heads, an opportunity to trade the range emerges.

Source: MarketPulse by OANDA Group

Pedestrians at Pitt Street Mall in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday, July 24, 2025.

Australia's inflation accelerated in October, beating analysts' estimates and rising at its fastest pace in seven months, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday.

The consumer price index rose 3.8% in October, year on year, marking its fastest pace since adopting a new measure for headline inflation starting April, according to the official release. That was higher than economists' forecast for a 3.6% rise in a Reuters poll.

The largest contributor to the elevated inflation was the housing sector, which grew 5.9%. On a monthly basis, the CPI was flat compared to September, versus analysts' estimates for a 0.2% gain.

This is the first that that the ABS has released the complete monthly CPI, as the government transitions from the quarterly CPI to using the monthly gauge as the primary measure for headline inflation.

Separately, a gauge on Australian business conditions picked up in October, rising to the highest level since March 2024, according to a survey by National Australia Bank earlier this month, as companies reported better sales and profits.

The Reserve Bank of Australia held interest rates at 3.6% earlier this month, saying it was cautious about easing further given higher inflation, a stronger-than-expected recovery in consumer demand and a revival in the housing market.

Source: CNBC

Key points:

Democratic U.S. Senator Edward Markey on Tuesday urged President Donald Trump not to resume explosive nuclear weapons testing, saying that doing so could spur rival nuclear powers Russia and China to do the same.

Trump late last month announced on social media that he was directing the Pentagon to immediately restart the process for testing nuclear weapons after a halt of 33 years. His move caused confusion because it is the National Nuclear Security Administration, a branch of the Energy Department, that would carry out explosive nuclear weapons tests.

"Even one small U.S. nuclear test would give Russia and China the green light to conduct many large nuclear tests that would be much more useful for the development of new nuclear weapons that could pose a threat to U.S. national security," Markey wrote in a letter to Trump.

Markey, a co-chair of the Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Working Group with members in the Senate and House of Representatives, has been a longtime leader of non-proliferation efforts in Congress. He had pushed Trump in 2020, during his first presidential term, against resuming explosive nuclear weapons tests.

The White House reiterated on Tuesday that the testing process will begin "immediately" and that Trump had instructed his administration to do it "because of other countries' testing programs."

Trump would like to see denuclearization, but he feels the action is appropriate to "maintain a strong, credible and effective nuclear deterrent," a White House official said.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe said on social media on November 3 that Trump "is right" about other countries testing nuclear weapons.

In response to Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his top officials to draft proposals for a possible test of nuclear weapons, something Moscow has not done since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

Trump has suggested that Russia and China are conducting small nuclear tests that are hard to detect, known as hydronuclear tests, in violation of U.S. policy and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, Markey said in the letter.

"Reports of such tests from 2019 raise concerns, but they are unconfirmed," Markey said. "Even if true, they would not justify renewed U.S. nuclear testing."

Markey asked Trump for evidence by December 15 that Russia and China are conducting secret nuclear tests. He also asked Trump whether his statements reflect a misunderstanding of the difference between missile tests and nuclear explosive tests.

Source: TradingView

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a 0.3% rise in the Producer Price Index for September 2025, with impacts seen across various economic sectors.

With the Federal Reserve's upcoming meeting, these inflation figures could influence monetary policy decisions amidst ongoing economic discussions.

September PPI Rises 0.3%, Limited Market Reaction

The September PPI increase aligns with economic forecasts, reflecting ongoing pressure from rising energy and food costs. This data plays a crucial role in shaping the Fed's assessment of inflation trends. Despite the rise, core PPI—excluding food and energy—showed a tamer increase of 2.9% year-on-year, marking a period of moderation. This could influence the Fed's balance between preventing inflation and fostering growth.

Market reactions were limited, with the S&P 500 trading flat pre-market. No significant movements were observed in cryptocurrency markets, with Bitcoin and Ethereum remaining stable. Federal Reserve officials have not commented yet, and their upcoming December meeting is poised to consider this data alongside the forthcoming PCE index for potential policy adjustments.

The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 0.3 percent in September, seasonally adjusted. Over the past 12 months, the index rose 2.7 percent.

Cryptocurrency Markets Steady Amid PPI Report

Did you know? In 2022, similar PPI increases led to a 75-basis-point rate hike, causing Bitcoin to drop by ~20% in the following week.

Currently, Bitcoin (BTC) is priced at $87,590.66, with a market capitalization of formatNumber(1747735553640, 2). Its dominance is 57.90%, and the trading volume has decreased by 12.42% over 24 hours. BTC's 30-day price has declined by 23.66%, while its circulating supply stands at 19,953,446, as reported by CoinMarketCap.

Bitcoin(BTC), daily chart, screenshot on CoinMarketCap at 00:52 UTC on November 26, 2025. Source: CoinMarketCap

The Coincu research team highlights that past inflation data often foreshadow Fed interest adjustments. While crypto markets remain steady, significant PPI changes can still trigger volatility if followed by unexpected Fed action. The sector continues to watch closely for future regulatory outcomes.

Source: CryptoSlate

Computer and printer maker HP announced on Nov 25 a sweeping restructuring plan that will eliminate about 10 per cent of its workforce globally as the company pivots toward artificial intelligence to boost efficiency.

According to its latest earnings report, the tech giant expects to reduce its global headcount by between 4,000 and 6,000 employees to focus on adopting AI to increase innovation and customer satisfaction.

HP's move reflects a growing trend across the tech sector, where companies are investing heavily in AI development while using the technology to reduce operational costs.

Major tech firms including Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have announced workforce reductions over the past two years, with many citing the need to reallocate resources, including jobs, toward AI initiatives.

Industry analysts say AI automation is particularly affecting roles in customer support, content moderation, data entry, and certain computer programming tasks.

HP said its AI plan aims to generate approximately US$1 billion in annual savings by the end of fiscal 2028.

The company has been working to transform its business model amid changing demand patterns in the PC and printing markets.

HP chief executive officer Enrique Lores told the Wall Street Journal that the company plans to raise the prices of its computers and work with new suppliers to help offset the higher costs of AI computing.

In its latest quarter, HP posted a profit of US$795 million, compared with US$906 million a year earlier.

Revenue rose 4.2 per cent to US$14.64 billion, topping analyst estimates with sales in PCs offsetting a decline in printer sales. AFP

Source: Straitstimes