Oil prices retreated to their lowest level in two months on Tuesday, while gold suffered its sharpest daily decline in weeks, as investors digested easing geopolitical tensions and hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data. In corporate news, artificial intelligence firm Anthropic set the price range for its highly anticipated initial public offering, and Nvidia shares tumbled on reports of alleged unauthorized chip shipments to China.
Oil Slips as Iran Tensions Ease
Brent crude futures fell 0.88% to $91.76 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declined 0.71% to $86.23. Both benchmarks were on track for their lowest closing levels since August 31, after U.S. officials signaled that further major military action against Iran might not be necessary. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told G7 allies that economic sanctions and a naval blockade were proving effective, reducing the need for large-scale combat operations. President Donald Trump also indicated he would hold off on additional strikes for now.
Prices recovered some early losses after Iran's top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, said there were no ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington. Meanwhile, Russian and Ukrainian officials held their first peace talks since February in Abu Dhabi, raising hopes of a potential settlement that could allow more Russian oil to reach global markets, although the two sides remain far apart.
Gold Drops Nearly 3% on Inflation Data
Spot gold fell 2.71% to $4,026.78 an ounce, while U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled 1.82% lower at $4,039.20. The decline came after the U.S. Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in October, above economists' expectations of a 0.3% increase. The data reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve could maintain a tighter monetary policy, with markets fully pricing in a 25-basis-point rate increase in December and the probability of a larger 50-basis-point move rising to 10% from zero before the report, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
A stronger dollar and higher Treasury yields, both consequences of the inflation data, make gold more expensive for international buyers and increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion. Silver also declined 3.95% to $51.30 an ounce, while platinum and palladium fell 2.7% and 1.2%, respectively.
Anthropic Sets IPO Range at $70-$78
Anthropic has set a price range of $70 to $78 per share for its planned initial public offering, targeting a valuation of up to $1.4 trillion on a fully diluted basis. The company plans to offer 825 million shares, potentially raising as much as $64.4 billion, with trading expected to begin on the Nasdaq on November 19 under the ticker symbol ANT. The offering comes amid concerns about the sustainability of AI investment, particularly as technology companies face substantial infrastructure spending and higher borrowing costs.
Anthropic is also planning a separate $26 billion private placement involving major technology companies, including Alphabet, Nvidia and AMD, as well as Broadcom, Micron, Microsoft and TSMC. Combined with the public offering, the transactions could raise up to $90.4 billion. The company's latest prospectus puts its October 31 annualized revenue run rate at approximately $81 billion, highlighting rapid demand for its Claude products, though it also faces substantial computing commitments and competition from other AI developers.
Nvidia Falls 6.5% on China Chip Reports
Nvidia shares dropped 6.5% on Tuesday following reports that restricted AI processors worth $7.5 billion were allegedly delivered to Chinese firms through a network linked to Alice Huang, an executive suspected by U.S. officials of working with Chinese intelligence. The reported network involved companies in China and Singapore and allegedly facilitated the movement of around 240,000 processors, including H100, H200 and A100 models. Some computing capacity was reportedly used by major Chinese technology companies, including Alibaba and Tencent.
President Trump said the FBI was investigating the matter but expressed confidence in CEO Jensen Huang. Beijing has rejected the allegations, while Megaspeed said investigations had found no evidence of illicit chip transfers or illegal activity. Nvidia's board has launched an independent investigation but said it had no reason to believe company secrets or national security had been compromised. Despite the pressure, ARK Invest's Cathie Wood purchased 90,443 Nvidia shares across her firm's exchange-traded funds. Citi analyst Atif Malik lowered his price target to $285 from $315, citing valuation concerns and risks surrounding leadership stability, while APAC Research upgraded the stock to Buy.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
