Crude oil pulled back yesterday on profit-taking ahead of the year-end. Yet, price stayed to recent 26-month high. The industry-sponsored API report showed crude stock-build in the week ended December 24, compared with expectations of another week of draw. Investors showed little reaction to the report but rather awaited estimates from the US Energy Department. Precious metals rallied amid weakness in USD. The benchmark contract for Comex gold surged for a 3rd straight day to a 3-week high of 1414.9 before settling at 1413.5, up +0.56%. Silver jumped to as high as 30.72 before finishing the day at 30.704. The contract reached a new 30-year high of 30.79 in Asian session today. For PGMs, platinum edged modestly higher while palladium jumped to as high as 796.95, the highest level in almost a decade, before closing at 793.4. American Petroleum institute (API) said after market close that US crude oil inventory increased +3.06 mmb to 345.07 mmb in the week ended December 24. This marked the first rise in 5 weeks and was in contrast of consensus of a drop of -2.85 mmb. Meanwhile gasoline stockpile contracted -3.14 mmb to 216.37 mmb while distillate stockpiles gained 1.4 mmb to 162.66 mmb. While the set of data estimated by API was diverged from market expectations, investors' focus was on the report by the US Energy Department today. Today in Asia, HSBC and Markit released its finding for China's PMI. The reading fell, for the first time in 5 months, to a 3-month low of 54.4 in December from 55.3 in the prior month. The slowdown was mainly driven decline in 'output' and 'new orders' growths, while 'employment' expanded faster at 51.5 in December compared with 50.2 previously. According to HSBC, the slowdown is disinflationary but is not sufficient to contain inflation. China will likely accelerate tightening measures, including further rate hikes, to fight against inflation.

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