Markets Today: German Consumer Sentiment Improves, Gold Holds Near 2-Week Highs, Thanksgiving Holiday in the US

Most Read: Markets are back in Euphoria – Market Wrap for the North American session - November 26

Asian stock markets generally performed well on Thursday. The overall MSCI All Country World Index continued its positive streak, rising for the fifth day in a row. This recent performance has helped limit its total loss for November to just 0.5%, following seven straight months of gains before that.

Asian stocks specifically saw a rise of 0.5% on Thursday, which narrowed their November loss to 2%. Japan's Nikkei index performed strongly, surging by more than 1%. Other markets also moved up, with Taiwan's index rising 0.5% for what could be its fourth day of gains, and Singapore adding 0.4%.

Meanwhile, shares in Jakarta initially hit a new record high of 8,622.268 before changing direction and trading 0.3% lower, despite having increased by nearly 2% over the previous four days.

China’s attention was focused on the property sector after China proposed deferring payments on a local bond, causing some of its notes to fall to record lows.

Consumer confidence in Germany saw a slight improvement as the country headed into December 2025.

The GfK Consumer Climate Indicator increased from -24.1 to -23.2, which was exactly what market analysts had predicted. People felt more willing to buy things for the second month in a row leading up to the holiday season, returning to the level seen a year ago. However, the desire to save money slightly decreased. On the downside, views on the future of the economy became slightly pessimistic, and hopes for future income turned negative, suggesting that family finances are still under pressure.

Overall, consumer sentiment is now nearly the same as it was the previous year, which is seen as good news for retailers, indicating that Christmas sales should be stable.

However, an expert noted that while consumers are holding up well, they don't expect the economy to get significantly better anytime soon.

European stocks were mostly flat or slightly down on Thursday, pausing after three days of increases.

Investors were feeling optimistic earlier in the week due to growing hopes that the Federal Reserve (Fed) might cut interest rates next month, supported by recent economic data suggesting a weaker economy, and positive signs regarding a Russia-Ukraine peace deal. The overall pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.2% but is still trading near its highest point for the week.

Key national markets like London's FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX were also flat or slightly lower. The biggest news was for the sportswear company Puma, whose shares jumped 13% following reports that the Chinese company Anta Sports Products might be interested in buying them out.

With US markets closed for the Thanksgiving holiday and set for a shorter session on Friday, attention today will also turn to the release of the minutes from the last meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB).

On the FX front, the US dollar was generally losing value on Thursday and was headed for its biggest weekly drop in four months, partly because trading was slow ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday in the US.

Market participants are looking ahead to next year, considering that the US might be the only major economy preparing to cut interest rates.

The Japanese yen gained slightly against the dollar, supported by recent more aggressive statements from officials at the Bank of Japan.

The euro slipped back a little to $1.1590 after briefly reaching a high point for the last week and a half. The Australian dollar continued its gains following a higher-than-expected inflation report on Wednesday, which suggests that interest rate cuts may also be off the table there.

Meanwhile, the Chinese yuan held steady at 7.08 per dollar, thanks to intervention from China's central bank.

Finally, the British pound rose to its highest level since late October and was on track for its best weekly performance since August, as the recently announced UK budget eased some worries about the country's finances.

Currency Power Balance

Oil prices fell slightly on Thursday. This small drop was mainly due to growing hopes that a ceasefire might happen between Ukraine and Russia. If a peace deal is reached, it could lead to the removal of Western sanctions against Russia, allowing more Russian oil to enter the global market, which would increase supply and lower prices.

However, trading in oil was expected to be very light and slow because markets in the United States are closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Specifically, Brent crude oil futures dropped by 12 cents (0.2%) to 63.01 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures slipped 5 cents (0.1%) to 58.6 a barrel.

Gold prices remained stable on Thursday, staying close to the highest level they've reached in the past two weeks. Market participants were closely watching and trying to determine the chances that the US central bank might cut interest rates when it meets in December.

Spot gold (gold available for immediate delivery) was steady at $4,165.24/oz. Meanwhile, US gold futures (contracts for future delivery in December) saw a very small drop of 0.1%, settling at $4,162.20/oz.

Read More:

• Gold (XAU/USD) Price Up 2.5% for the Week. Is a Break of $4200/oz a Certainty?
• Silver (XAG/USD) Price Outlook: Failed Breakout and Double-Top hints at Rangebound action
• Oil falls below $58 as Ukraine agrees to 19-point Peace Plan

The European session will be quiet one moving forward, with a lack of high impact data releases.

With US markets closed for Thanksgiving, there will be much less trading activity (liquidity) today. This quiet environment might be a good opportunity for Japanese authorities to step in and try to lower the value of the US dollar against the Japanese yen (USD/JPY).

However, they might still prefer to wait for news that is bad for the dollar before intervening, and since the USD/JPY rate has already stopped moving higher, the sense of urgency for them to act has decreased. Although the dollar is still somewhat highly valued compared to other major currencies (G10), its value has already dropped quite a bit this week.

Since there isn't much major economic news expected until more data is released, i am neutral on the US dollar for this holiday period.

From a technical standpoint, the FTSE 100 has continued its recovery but has run into resistance provide by the 100-day MA.

A brief foray above the 100-day MA failed to gain acceptance.

A pullback now faces support at 9622 (200-day MA) and the 9550 handle which could prove a tough nut to crack for bears.

The RSI period-14 remains above the 50 mark which is a sign of bullish momentum.

FTSE 100 Index Daily Chart, November 27. 2025

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