Renewed tensions between the United States and Russia have resurfaced following an incident involving an oil tanker, sparking market concerns about potential disruptions to global energy supplies. Washington's move, associated with tightening oversight and enforcement of sanctions on Russian oil shipments, is viewed by Moscow as provocative and could worsen relations between the two countries. Russia views these actions as an attempt by the United States to suppress Russian energy exports and strengthen its dominance in the global oil market. Meanwhile, Washington argues that these measures...
Silver prices were near the $32.4 per ounce on Tuesday, trading with marginal gains for a second session and remaining around 12% higher year-to-date gain amid higher demand for silver as bullion and its industrial uses. Precious metals remained supported by the outlook of lower interest rates by major central banks, which reduce the opportunity cost of holding assets without any yield. Softer inflation prints maintained bets of two rate cuts by the Fed this year, while the BoE cut its benchmark rate and the PBoC reduced the rate on liquidity operations. In the meantime, higher...
Oil prices slipped on Tuesday as traders weighed the impact on supply from Russia-Ukraine peace talks and US-Iran negotiations, strong front-month physical demand in Asia and a cautious outlook for China's economy. Brent futures for July dipped 19 cents to $65.35 a barrel by 0625 GMT. June U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures, which expire on Tuesday, gained 3 cents to $62.72, while the more active July contract slipped 17 cents to $61.97 a barrel. Discussions on Iran's nuclear programme would "lead nowhere" if Washington insisted that Tehran slash uranium enrichment activity...
Gold prices eased on Tuesday, as a slightly firmer dollar and optimism over a potential ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine dampened demand for safe-haven assets. Spot gold was down 0.5% at $3,214.17 an ounce as of 0627 GMT. U.S. gold futures slipped 0.6% to $3,215.60. The dollar slightly recovered after touching a more-than-one-week low in the prior session, making greenback-priced gold less appealing to holders of other currencies. "We are seeing a knee-jerk response to the U.S. credit downgrade wear off and there's some hope of a truce between Ukraine and Russia," said Kyle Rodda,...
The dollar index fell to 100.1 on Tuesday, marking a near two-week low and extending a 0.7% decline from the previous session, as renewed concerns over the US economic and fiscal outlook weighed on sentiment. Traders also remained focused on potential developments in global trade negotiations. Over the weekend, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reaffirmed that President Trump intends to impose tariffs at the rates threatened last month, on trading partners that fail to engage in "good faith" negotiations. Adding to fiscal anxiety, Moody's downgraded the US rating from Aaa to Aa1 on Friday,...
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback against a basket of currencies, oscillates in a range around the 100.35 area through the Asian session on Tuesday and remains close to over a one-week low touched the previous day. Moreover, the lack of any buying interest and a bearish fundamental backdrop suggests that the path of least resistance for the index remains to the downside. Traders increased their bets for further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in 2025 following last week's softer-than-expected release of the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Producer...
Asian stock markets fell in unison on Thursday, following Wall Street's decline. A brief rally in tech stocks led by Nvidia quickly faded, prompting investors to turn away from riskier assets like...
European stock indices closed marginally lower on Wednesday as equities took a breather from their recent strong momentum, while investors continued to assess the outlook for the ECB's policy this...
The upcoming Supreme Court ruling on the legality of President Donald Trump's massive tariffs, which rocked markets in April, is one of the next major tests for US stocks and bonds.
Equity markets...