The market is assessing the impact of Trump's nomination for Secretary of the Treasury. The energy sector is in focus, as the Trump team will vigorously promote natural gas exports and oil drilling. The U.S. market will be closed on Thursday for Thanksgiving and will close early on Friday, so trading volume may be thin this week.

The outlook for interest rates from the Federal Reserve is back in focus. Investors will pay attention to the PCE price index for October to be released on Wednesday, which is the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation indicator. The minutes from the last Federal Reserve policy meeting will also be released before Thanksgiving.

As of the time of writing, the three major indices are collectively rising, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting a historic high during the session. $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ Up 0.58%, $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ Up 0.5%, $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ Up 1%.

Goldman Sachs trader Scott Rubner stated that U.S. stocks are expected to begin their year-end rally this week, pushing the s&p 500 index up approximately 4%, to 6,200 points.

Rubner mentioned in a report to clients last Friday that corporate buyback demand is also increasing, adding reason to believe the rally may start in the coming days. "I don't think many people will be eating turkey and celebrating Thanksgiving this Thursday, then shorting the s&p index," he wrote.

He noted that the consolidation phase the stock market experienced last week is quite typical. Rubner wrote that the inflow of capital into the U.S. stock market over the past three months has been the largest since 2021, and the inflow in November alone may set a record.

The market is paying attention to the composition of President-elect Trump's administration and its potential impact on the U.S. economy.

Trump stated on Friday (November 22) EST that he intends to nominate Scott Bessent, founder of hedge fund Key Square Group, for secretary of the treasury. Investors are optimistic about this choice and view this hedge fund manager as someone who supports the stock market and may help alleviate some of Trump's more extreme protectionist policies.

Bessent stated in an interview before the nomination, "I suggest gradually raising import taxes. If you adjust prices alongside all the other things President Trump is discussing..."Therefore, events like the 9/11 attacks, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict have all driven significant increases in the price of gold, as investors seek stability during turbulent times.Considering all factors, we will again reach or fall below the 2% inflation target.

On Monday morning, US Treasury yields retreated slightly, and the usd fell after Bensent was nominated by Trump on Friday evening.

Raymond James Financial policy analyst Ed Mills stated: "Supporters would argue that Mr. Bensent's career as a macro investor will enable him to understand the ripple effects of President Trump's plans regarding trade, taxes, and deregulation. If Mr. Bensent can delay or restrict a comprehensive import tax policy while extending tax cuts and promoting deregulation (which would increase energy production), all of these support US industry and GDP growth, which would be welcomed by the market."

XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks pointed out that the dollar fell after Trump announced he would nominate Bensent for Treasury Secretary. "Bensent is seen as the antidote to Trump’s most extreme economic views," she said.

Bensent advocates for reducing government spending and is expected to advocate for robust measures regarding trade policies that may cause inflation. Brooks stated this could boost risk appetite and reduce safe-haven inflow to the usd.

However, prominent US economist Peter D. Schiff criticized Trump's decision to appoint hedge fund manager Bensent as the new Treasury Secretary.

Schiff publicly mocked Trump in a post on X, writing: "Trump picks Scott Bensent as the new Treasury Secretary. But his actual title should be 'Minister of Debt'. His job is to keep the Ponzi scheme going. He must find buyers for trillions of new national debt each year and convince existing holders to roll over at maturity."

Bessent stated in an interview on Sunday that he would prioritize tax cuts upon taking office.

Reducing taxes could lead to increased government borrowing on the debt market; however, Trump still believes that his proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) will successfully reduce "wasteful spending" without increasing borrowing.

Bessent will replace the outgoing Janet Yellen as Treasury Secretary, coinciding with the USA national debt ballooning to 36 trillion dollars.

The role of the US Treasury has also been criticized by other economists. Gordon Johnson, CEO and founder of GLJ Research, recently stated on a podcast that as long as the benchmark yield surges, Yellen and Federal Reserve Chairman Powell will continuously intervene.

Gordon Johnson stated: 'In early 2024, the Federal Reserve will reduce the pace of quantitative tightening by 30 billion dollars a month, which is just the amount they are allowing. Recently, Janet Yellen announced that she would purchase 4 billion dollars of US Treasury bonds weekly. As long as yields start to soar, these entities will continuously intervene. They are trying to prevent any dysfunction, or more specifically, dysfunction in the US Treasury market.'

Additionally, insider sources say that Trump's transition team is developing a comprehensive energy plan that includes approving export licenses for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects and increasing oil drilling on US coastal and federal land. The plan will be launched within days of him taking office.

Trump also plans to repeal some climate legislation and regulations, such as electric vehicle tax credits and new clean power plant standards. The top priority will be to lift the current administration's pause on new LNG export licenses, expedite drilling permit issuance, and swiftly restart the five-year US coastal drilling plan.

US stock earnings continue to move forward. Bath & Body Works shares rose after the company's revenue and earnings exceeded analysts' expectations from a survey conducted by the London Stock Exchange Group.

Famous companies such as Nordstrom, Best Buy, CrowdStrike, and Dell Technologies will release their financial reports on Tuesday.

On the economic data front on Monday, the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank reported that economic activity in the USA decreased in October. The Chicago Fed national index, covering 85 economic indicators, reported -0.4 for October, compared to -0.27 in September.

The report indicates that among the four major categories of indicators that constitute the index, three were below September levels, specifically production, employment, and consumer/housing. An index below zero suggests that national economic growth is below trend levels, indicating a future easing of inflationary pressures. Out of the 85 monthly indicators, 30 contributed positively, while 55 contributed negatively.

Focus stocks

Most of the star tech stocks rose. $Apple (AAPL.US)$ 、 $Amazon (AMZN.US)$ 、 $Meta Platforms (META.US)$ rose more than 1%, $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$ 、 $Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM.US)$ Dropped more than 2%.

Most china concept stocks are down. $NIO Inc (NIO.US)$ 、 $KE Holdings (BEKE.US)$ fell by more than 3%, $PDD Holdings (PDD.US)$ 、 $XPeng (XPEV.US)$ Dropped over 2%. $Alibaba (BABA.US)$ 、 $Baidu (BIDU.US)$ The TOPIX index rose more than 2%.

Cryptos concept stocks have all declined, with bitcoin falling below 95,000 usd. $Hut 8 (HUT.US)$Down nearly 10%. $MicroStrategy (MSTR.US)$ Dropped by over 7%, $Coinbase (COIN.US)$ 、 $MARA Holdings (MARA.US)$ Fell more than 3%.

$Amazon (AMZN.US)$ Increased by 2%, reports indicate that amazon's Trainium2 chip has begun to be deployed in datacenters.

$Berkshire Hathaway-B (BRK.B.US)$ Up 1%, Buffett converted his 1,600 shares of Berkshire Hathaway Class A into 2.4 million Class B shares, simultaneously donating these shares to four family foundations.

$Intel (INTC.US)$ Up nearly 2%, the company claims that the USA Department of Commerce is about to issue nearly 8 billion dollars in chip act subsidies.

$Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.US)$ Up 2%, it is reported that there is an intention to enter the mobile chip field and expand into the mobile device market.

$Super Micro Computer (SMCI.US)$ Up over 16%, it recently announced that it has submitted a plan to the Nasdaq exchange, committing to complete the delayed annual and quarterly financial reports.

$Rigetti Computing (RGTI.US)$ Surged 68%, announced the successful completion of a $0.1 billion market stock issuance, plans to use the proceeds for working capital, capital expenditures, and advancements in superconducting quantum computing technology.

Paused Alzheimer's drug trial,$Cassava Sciences (SAVA.US)$ Plummeted 85%

Editor/Rocky