A meandering week ahead for markets, featuring some inflation news in the US and Australia, a GDP update for America, building approvals in Australia, China's latest economic activity surveys, and a final rush of meetings and earnings releases both locally and offshore.

Despite repeated forecasts of a growing supply deficit, platinum prices have slid more than 14% up to last week from January 1.

For the third time this year, the Chinese government is raising concerns about soaring iron ore prices, attributing them to speculation. On Thursday, the country's primary economic planning body, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), issued stern warnings.

Tower, the New Zealand-based insurer, will not pay a final dividend due to the substantial costs incurred from storms, floods, and cyclones in early 2023.

In a surprise announcement late Tuesday, Warren Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, revealed it has received a letter detailing what appears to be his successor and the trustees of his huge fortune, valued at more than $118 billion (more than $180 billion AUD).

Ahead of the start of the real "Black Friday" sales season in the US, the third-quarter reports from some of America's major retailers have been less than stellar, indicating the need for a significant end-of-year push.

The Fed's latest policy meeting minutes were predictably a touch hawkish—indicating rates would stay higher for longer. One commentary described it as 'a slight tightening bias.' However, gold bounced back over $2,000 an ounce on Comex, gaining 1% on the day.

Inflation poses a significant challenge for the Reserve Bank and Governor Michele Bullock, according to the minutes of the bank's recent policy meeting, where interest rates were raised.

Argentina has elected a hard-right populist as president, a move that is likely to set off ripples across global financial markets, especially currencies, with his plans to 'dollarize' his country's economy.

Optus is searching for a new CEO following the resignation of Kelly Bayer Rosmarin on Monday morning, after what had been a tumultuous 18 months for the country's second-largest mobile telecoms group.

In September, China continued its six-month streak of cutting its holdings of US Treasury debt, according to data from the US Treasury. As America's second-largest foreign creditor, following Japan, China reduced its holdings of US Treasury securities to $778.1 billion, marking a $27.3 billion decrease from the previous month. This September figure represents the lowest level of China's holdings since June 2009 when it held $776.4 billion in US Treasury securities.

This week, we delve into the minutes from meetings held by two central banks earlier this month. Additionally, we keep a close eye on the crucial shareholder meeting for Origin Energy in Australia, where a massive bid from Canada's Brookfield and the US-based EIG hangs in the balance. AustralianSuper's opposition to the $20 billion offer adds an element of suspense to this event, set to take place on Thursday.

Metal and iron ore prices performed well last week, even in the face of another round of weak economic data from China.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 2.2% last week, extending its winning streak to a third week as investors were encouraged by better-than-expected October inflation data and stronger-than-expected quarterly results from some retailers.

OPEC and Russia are feeling the pressure due to the recent decline in world oil prices over the past month, which is affecting their revenue and commitment to production cuts.

Chile's SQM, the world's second-largest lithium group, witnessed a more than 7% drop in its shares on Thursday, in line with the rest of the sector, as it reported significant declines in revenue, prices, and earnings for the three months ending in September.

IGO (ASX:IGO) Chair, Mike Nossal, expressed his support for incoming CEO Ivan Vella after Rio Tinto's recent dismissal of Vella for an alleged breach of confidentiality. Vella, who had spent two decades at Rio Tinto, was scheduled to join IGO in December to replace the late Peter Bradford.

The global oil market has shifted into a state of contango, where future prices trade at a premium to spot prices. This change signals growing apprehensions about demand in 2024 and an oversupply issue.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has abandoned more of its share holdings in some of America's oldest and best-known companies in the three months leading up to September, signaling a further push into cash.

Judging by the results of the latest Bank of America monthly survey, big global investors made the right choice in favouring bonds and equities last month.

Temporary jobs for The Voice referendum in October might have played a part, but that doesn't fully explain the unexpected jump of 55,000 new jobs last month.

Banks outperformed while mining companies faced challenges in paying dividends in the third quarter of 2023, according to the latest global dividend survey by Janus Henderson, a fund management firm.

The 0.1% drop in US retail sales for October has reinforced market belief that interest rates have halted their ascent, with the next move likely being a downward one—possibly in May.

Despite China's crude steel output falling for the fourth consecutive month in October, iron ore futures prices hit new 17-month highs on the SGX in Singapore on Wednesday.

In October, there were tentative signs of an uptick in Chinese economic activity. However, this positive news was counteracted by yet another drop in investment, particularly in the property sector.