What you need to know on Wednesday, December 8:

 Markets were more active on Tuesday, with optimism leading the way. Hopes that the Omicron coronavirus variant is milder and won’t interrupt the economic comeback sent global equities well into the green. Nevertheless, it’s too early to say how things will turn out with the new COVID-19 strain.

The EUR was the weakest USD rival, while the AUD and the CAD were the strongest. EUR/USD fell to 1.1227, its lowest for December, following the release of unimpressive EU data.  The GBP/USD pair neared its yearly low, bouncing modestly ahead of the close to settle at around 1.13230.

EU data failed to impress, as the EU Q3 Gross Domestic Product was confirmed at 2.2% QoQ. On the other hand, the German ZEW showed that Economic Sentiment improved in Germany and the EU in December, although the assessment of the current situation plummeted to -7.4 vs the 5 anticipated by markets.

AUD/USD trades around 0.7110, underpinned by rallying equities and an optimistic RBA. USD/CAD is down to 1.2650, as oil prices kept rallying, with WTI near $72.00 a barrel.

The dollar advanced modestly against safe-haven CHF and JPY, with the pairs confined to tight intraday ranges.

Gold ticked higher but held within familiar levels at around $1,785 a troy ounce.

US Treasury yields surged on the back of the market’s optimism, with the 10-year Treasury note yielding 1.48% by the end of the day.

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