Palladium drops 2% while the US dollar drops.

Palladium prices dropped on Friday as worries about the demand for industrial metals in 2019 caused the dollar to weaken versus its main competitors.

Despite a decline in the primary official manufacturing PMI, a Caixin survey conducted in China in November revealed an unexpected increase in factory activities.

Today's dollar decline helped most industrial metals, with the exception of palladium, gain some traction. The US inflation data was weaker than expected, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell gave a speech later today that hurt the value of the dollar. 

As both the US and the euro zone get ready to cut interest rates in 2024, weak inflation data in both regions reinforced the likelihood that there won't be any more policy tightening this year. 

In other news, the dollar index dropped 0.3% to 103.2 at 17:47 GMT, from a session high of 103.7 to a low of 103.2.

As of 17:48 GMT, palladium March futures had dropped 0.5% to $1,015 an ounce, while December futures had dropped 2%.