Daily summary: Wall Street crawls higher amid signs of easing inflation

Core PCE inflation in December fell to 4.4% y/y (expected: 4.4% y/y; previously: 4.7% y/y), while the headline reading eased to 5.0% y/y y (expected 5.0% y/y; previously: 5.5% y/y)

The dollar strengthened against majority of G10 currencies, however the scale of movement is rather limited - EURUSD currency pair fell 0.25% and the GBPUSD dropped 0.12%

The main stock indices from the Old Continent finished Friday's session slightly higher as traders restrain themselves from taking too much risk. On the week, the DAX went up 0.6% and the STOXX 600 added 0.8%.

Upbeat sentiment prevails on Wall Street - Dow Jones is trading 0.25% higher, whileS&P500 and  Nasdaq rose 0.45% and  1.10% respectively.

On the corporate side, American Express soared 12%, after its upbeat earnings and 2023 revenue forecast. Intel plunged 7% after a dismal first-quarter outlook, while Silvergate Capital, the crypto-focused bank, plunged 22% after it suspended dividend payments as its stock has been falling since November.

Mixed moods prevail in the cryptocurrency market - Bitcoin is gaining nearly 1%, while Ethereum is trading near the flatline

Next week, investors' attention will focus on the decisions of the Fed, ECB and BoE as data from the US labor market. 

WTI crude futures reversed earlier gains and dropped over 1.5% to below $80 per barrel on Friday, amid prospects of still strong Russian supply.

Oil loadings from Russia's Baltic ports are expected to increase  by 50% from a month earlier in January mostly thanks to strong demand in Asia. Traders noted that Urals and KEBCO crude oil loadings from Ust-Luga over Feb. 1-10 may rise to 1.0 million tonnes from 0.9 million in the plan for the same period of January.

Precious metals trade mixed amid higher yields and stronger US dollar. Gold managed to defend crucial support at $1920, while silver failed to break above resistance at $24.00 and pulled back to $23.50 mark.