Morning Bites (part 2)

🚘US light vehicle sales were up 4% YoY in January from a low base, slightly decelerating from the 5% YoY growth in December. The figure was still 9% less than the 2019 level. Seasonally adjusted sales volumes increased 5% YoY in December (-6% vs. the 2019 level). Overall, market participants in US are still concerned about elevated car prices and expensive loan payments. The latter, in our view, might add some stress to domestic car sales in 2023 and, hence, affect demand for PGMs

💍Hong Kong jewellery and watch sales fell 3% YoY in December, vs. the 8% YoY drop in November. Meanwhile, in January, according to Rapaport, local jewellery trading was relatively quiet after the Lunar New Year festival, but Mainland demand was improving amid easing Covid-19 restrictions and the opening of the Hong Kong border. In our view, this might slightly support rough diamond demand, still heavily stressed by adverse macroeconomic conditions

#cars #diamonds
https://metals-wire.com:3000/news-reports