On Tuesday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported a 64,000 rise in November payrolls, an upside surprise versus expectations for a 50,000 gain and a reversal of October’s headline decline of 105,000.

The unemployment rate edged up one-tenth to 4.6%, while wage growth appeared to cool. Average hourly earnings rose 0.1% m/m and 3.5% y/y in November, undershooting forecasts of 0.3% and 3.6%, respectively.

Private payrolls increased by 69,000 on the month, only partially offset by a combined 10,000 decline across manufacturing and government employment. Analysts noted that private-sector hiring has totalled 44,000 over the past six months, marking the slowest pace of six-month job growth since the pandemic.

The agency released revised October figures alongside the November report, but noted that household survey data for October were not collected due to the federal government shutdown.

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Managers in Europe’s largest economy are expected to express a smidgen more optimism about their lot as concerns about German growth persist.

An economists’ poll said the headline business climate index for Germany due Wednesday from the country’s Ifo economics institute is forecast to edge higher to 88.2 points from last month’s reading of 88.1.

The expectations measure of the index for the coming six months is projected to slip to 90.5 points from 90.6, with December’s current assessment reading set to improve to 85.7 versus 85.6 in the previous month.

Purchasing managers in Germany were even more pessimistic than anticipated this month. S&P Global said Tuesday that its preliminary composite reading for December showed an unexpected decline to 51.5 points – a 4-month low – from 52.4 in November. The manufacturing reading slid half a point to 47.7, a 10-month low and even further away from growth territory beyond the 50-point mark. Services dropped a half point to a 3-month low of 52.6.

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The Federal Reserve was forced to quickly pivot from shrinking its balance sheet to adding liquidity back to the financial system last week because of inefficiencies in a key funding facility, Wall Street strategists said.

As part of efforts to regain control of money markets, the central bank removed operational limits to its liquidity tool, the Standing Repo Facility, and rebranded it to “standing repo operations” in a move that appeared aimed at easing the stigma around its use.

It was “a crisis of confidence” in the Fed’s main mechanism for preventing money market strains that prompted officials to launch Treasury bill purchases, alongside these moves, less than two weeks after they stopped unwinding holdings, Morgan Stanley strategists said.

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Crude oil prices fell to levels not seen since the start of 2021 as a widely expected supply glut picked up momentum and peace talks in the Russia-Ukraine conflict took steps forward.

Futures on international pricing benchmark Brent crude fell by more than 2.8% to trade below $58.86 on Tuesday morning, while futures on US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude temporarily fell by a deeper 3.1% to trade below $55.

Both energy products reached levels Tuesday morning that had not been seen since February 2021 as analysts pointed to an outlook marked by "extraordinary oversupply."

Both Brent and WTI crude are headed for yearly losses of more than 20% as the market has been flooded with supply.

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GLP-1 pills for obesity are closer than ever. 2026 is likely the year that two new oral weight loss drugs will reach patients in the U.S. For some people, pills may serve as a more convenient – and potentially in certain cases cheaper – alternative to today’s blockbuster injections.

Drugmakers Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have said their daily pills could help the drugs reach new patients. That could include people who are afraid of needles or patients who might benefit from the existing injections but don’t take them because they don’t view their need as severe enough. 

The upcoming pills aren’t expected to be more effective than weekly injections, but health experts stress that expanding the range of treatment options could still be a major win for patients. After the injections hit nationwide supply shortages in recent years, Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have already started preparing enough of their pills to meet expected demand. 

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