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...
The dollar was poised for its first monthly gain of the year against major currencies on Thursday, underpinned by easing trade tensions and U.S. economic resilience. In a widely expected move, the Bank of Japan on Thursday kept short-term interest rates steady at 0.5% by a unanimous vote, but revised up its inflation forecasts for the next few years. That came after the U.S. Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, ignoring persistent calls by President Donald Trump to lower borrowing costs. Fed Chair Jerome Powell also indicated he was in no rush to cut rates. The...
Gold rose, reversing some of the previous session's losses as traders reduced their bets on a September interest rate cut from the US Federal Reserve. Bullion rose 0.7% to trade near $3,299 an ounce, following a decline in the dollar after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell announced that interest rates would be held steady. "There's still a lot of uncertainty to be resolved," Powell said in a post-meeting press conference. "It doesn't feel like we're that close to the end of that process." Traders reduced the probability of a September rate cut to less than 50% after Powell's remarks. Higher...
Oil prices held gains this week as traders grappled with President Donald Trump's threat to impose punitive tariffs on Russian energy buyers. West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices were little changed on Thursday, but closed at a six-week high the day before. The US president said he would impose tariffs on Indian exports and penalties on its energy purchases from Russia starting August 1, the latest in a series of comments in which he expressed anger over the lack of a ceasefire in Ukraine. While the market impact of a disruption in Indian purchases could be significant, as Moscow would...
Gold prices rose more than 1% on Thursday (July 31st), pulling away from a one-month low hit in the previous session, as a weaker dollar and the announcement of new US tariffs boosted demand for the safe-haven asset. Spot gold rose 1.1% to $3,312.03 an ounce, as of 06:12 GMT. The bullion had hit its lowest level since June 30th at $3,267.79 on Wednesday. US gold futures rose 0.4% to $3,309. The dollar weakened from a two-month low, making gold cheaper for holders of other currencies. "We had some significant declines in gold prices yesterday around the release of the FOMC statement and the...
Oil prices were little changed on Thursday (July 31st) as investors weighed supply risks stemming from US President Donald Trump's push for a swift resolution to the war in Ukraine through additional tariffs, while a surprise increase in US crude stockpiles weighed on prices. Brent crude futures for September, which expire on Thursday, rose 4 cents, or 0.05%, to $73.28 a barrel at 08:12 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude for September also rose 4 cents, or 0.06%, to $70.04. Both benchmarks rose 1% on Wednesday. "We're looking for more clarity on the nature of any new tariffs or...
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...