Markets, 1 November 2026
Sunday board: Friday's closes firm up, oil a bit higher, steel still the story
What moved
- No new sessions since Friday, but the closes moved. Markets were shut on Saturday, so this board is still Friday 30 October. The sources have since settled their final Friday prices, and a few came in different from yesterday’s note. Oil finished stronger, copper and gold a bit weaker than first read. The numbers below are the updated ones.
- Oil ended the week higher. Brent closed around $113 a barrel, up about 1.7% on the day and 1.6% on the week. WTI closed around $104, up about 1.2%. The monthly gains of about 15% still span the late-September contract roll, so I wouldn’t lean on them.
- Gold’s drop held. It closed around $3,899 an ounce, down about 3.3% on the day, 2.7% on the week and about 7% on the month.
- Metals softer, steel firmer. COMEX copper is about $14,290 a tonne, down 1.6% on the day and about 2.4% on the month. Aluminium is about $3,168, down 0.5%, up about 1% on the week. US Midwest HRC is about $1,541 a tonne, up 0.5% on the day, about 4% on the week and about 7% on the month. Shanghai rebar reads 3,035 yuan a tonne. Zinc still hasn’t updated since 23 October ($3,944).
- Stocks. The S&P 500 closed Friday at 7,580 (down 1.8%) and the Nasdaq at 25,437 (down 2.9%, about 5% on the month). Emerging markets (EEM) fell 2.7% and are down about 8.6% on the month. The ADX closed at 9,466, nearly flat (down about 6.6% on the month). The DFM still shows 5,771, the same as Thursday.
- Rates and the dollar. Treasury yields are still the 29 October readings: the 2-year at 4.61% and the 10-year at 4.98%. The dollar index is about 102, flat. The monthly US PPIs for copper wire and cable, steel wire drawing and cement are still the September figures.
The truth: Nothing traded overnight, so nothing has really changed for UAE cable, electrical and construction suppliers. The revised closes just sharpen Friday’s picture. Steel is the cost that keeps moving, about 7% up on the month for HRC, which matters for wire, mesh, fencing, towers and rebar. Copper and aluminium are drifting a little lower, which is easy on conductor-heavy quotes. Oil near $113 keeps Gulf budgets healthy and freight and energy dear. Rates haven’t moved since Thursday, and with the dirham pegged, that’s where our financing costs sit too. My read is the same as yesterday: keep steel-heavy quotes short, keep escalation clauses in, and see what Monday’s sessions bring before reading anything into Friday. Not investment advice.
Sources and as-of dates for every number are on the Markets board.