Stephen Miran, a Federal Reserve governor whose term ends at the end of January, said Thursday that he is looking for 150 basis points of interest-rate cuts this year to boost the U.S. labor market. Miran told Bloomberg Television's Surveillance program that Fed officials had room to further reduce rates given his view that underlying inflation was likely running at 2.3%. "I'm looking for about a point and a half of cuts. A lot of that is driven by my view of inflation," Miran said. "Underlying inflation is running within noise of our target, and that's a good indication of where overall...
Oil prices rose as President Donald Trump tightened the blockade on Venezuela, with US forces boarding one tanker and pursuing another within weeks of capturing a vessel. West Texas Intermediate oil traded as high as $58 per barrel on Monday after two weeks of declines. The US Coast Guard boarded the tanker Centuries in the Caribbean on Saturday, carrying about 2 million barrels of Venezuelan crude. It was the first non-sanctioned vessel to be targeted. US forces are also pursuing the Bella 1, which was en route to Venezuela. Washington has been increasing pressure on the government of...
Gold and silver surged to all-time highs, as rising geopolitical tensions and bets on further U.S. interest rate cuts added momentum to their best annual performance in more than four decades. Gold and silver rose 2.1% to surpass their previous record of $4,381 an ounce set in October, while silver gained 3.4%, approaching $70 an ounce. This move extended a remarkable rally that has put both metals on track for their strongest annual performance since 1979. This latest surge came as traders bet the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates twice by 2026, and as U.S. President Donald Trump...
Gold (XAU/USD) surges to fresh record highs on Monday, as escalating geopolitical tensions bolster safe-haven demand. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is trading around $4,413, up about 1.70% on the day, after breaking above the October 21 peak near $4,381. The precious metal is on track for its strongest annual performance since 1979, with prices up nearly 67% year to date. The rally has been fuelled by a dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) stance, broadly weaker US Dollar (USD), sustained central-bank buying, and record inflows into Gold-backed ETFs. Looking ahead, markets continue to anticipate...
The U.S. dollar drifted lower on Monday after logging some gains last week, while threats of government intervention helped the Japanese yen recover mildly from recent losses. Regional markets showed little reaction to the People's Bank of China leaving a benchmark interest rate unchanged as widely expected. Risk appetite was dampened by increased geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, while markets were also on guard over renewed hostilities between Israel and Iran. The dollar found some strength last week as soft inflation data was insufficient in convincing markets that...
The dollar index held at 98.6 on Monday after a modest gain last week, with trading expected to be quiet this week due to the Christmas holiday. Investor attention will mainly be on the second estimate of GDP for the third quarter, set for release on Tuesday, which may offer further insights into the economy's health and the Federal Reserve's interest rate path. Traders currently anticipate that the Fed could deliver two 25bps rate reductions next year, amid signs of easing inflation and a weakening labor market. Meanwhile, Fed Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack on Sunday said that...
Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda stated that achieving 2% inflation is getting closer, although real inflation remains low. Ueda emphasized that the BOJ will continue to raise interest rates...
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintained its cash rate at 4.1% during its April meeting, holding borrowing costs unchanged after slashing 25 bps in the February meeting, aligning with market...