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 fell, following its biggest weekly loss in more than two years, as hedge funds piled into bearish bets after a fragile truce between Iran and Israel, and before a likely OPEC+ supply hike. Brent dropped to near $67 a barrel after sliding 12% last week, while West Texas Intermediate traded around $65. Iran said it remains skeptical that the US-brokered ceasefire with Israel will last, although President Donald Trump suggested he might back eventual sanctions relief for the Islamic Republic "if they can be peaceful." Key members of the Organization of...
Oil prices edged up slightly on Friday, recovering from a midday drop into negative territory following a report that OPEC+ was planning to hike production in August, but tumbled about 12% in the week in their biggest drop since March 2023. Brent crude futures settled at $67.77 a barrel, up 4 cents, or 0.1%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude finished up 28 cents, or 0.4%, at $65.52 a barrel. Four delegates from OPEC+, which includes allies of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said the group was set to boost production by 411,000 barrels per day in August, following a...
Gold price tumbled over 1.50% on Friday amid an improvement in risk appetite, driven by several factors. The de-escalation of the Israel–Iran conflict, the trade agreement with China, and ongoing negotiations between the United States (US) and its peers to reach commercial deals were welcomed by investors, who had previously sought refuge in Bullion's safe-haven demand. The XAU/USD trades at $3,274 after hitting a daily high of $3,328. On Thursday, the White House announced that the US and China have formally signed a trade agreement, effectively ending the ongoing "trade war." US Commerce...
Gold (XAU/USD) is on the defensive heading into the weekend, pressured by a combination of mixed US data and improving global risk sentiment. The precious metal is trading below $3,300, down nearly 2% on the day, as safe-haven flows continue to unwind. Friday's core PCE inflation print showed a modest uptick in May, reinforcing the Fed's cautious stance and creating a murkier outlook for the timing of rate cuts. Meanwhile, the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index ticked higher in June, while inflation expectations softened, pointing to stable consumer outlooks.The release of the...
The dollar index fell to 97.1 on Friday, its lowest level since February 2022, extending this week's drop to almost 2%, driven by mounting expectations of Fed rate cuts. Chair Powell struck a notably dovish tone during recent congressional testimony, suggesting that in the absence of inflationary pressures from tariffs, the Fed would have continued its rate-cutting cycle. Reports also suggested that President Trump may announce his pick for the next Fed Chair as early as September or October, potentially creating a "shadow" leadership structure that could guide monetary policy in a more...
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...