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 inched higher on Monday though remained dogged by uncertainty over trade talks between the U.S. and China, clouding the outlook for global growth and fuel demand, while the prospect of OPEC+ raising supply cast more gloom. Brent crude futures were up 21 cents, or 0.3%, at $67.08 a barrel, as of 0742 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 24 cents, or 0.4%, to $63.26 a barrel. Both benchmarks nudged higher for a third session. "Absence of news is pushing oil prices modestly higher as traders are positioned short ahead of potential increased OPEC+ supply from the May 5...
Gold futures are flat at $3,298.90 a troy ounce on a stronger U.S. dollar and signs of easing U.S.-China tensions. Gold prices slid on Friday after briefly breaching $3,500/oz earlier in the week. The most interesting point for markets is that buying demand from Asia appears to have dried up, at least for the time being, Pepperstone's Michael Brown says in a note. This could suggest more downside pressure in the near-term, which could be further exacerbated by some investors with weaker long positions bailing out the incredibly crowded gold trade, Brown writes. Given intense market...
Silver prices fell below $33 per ounce on Monday, extending losses from the previous session as easing US-China trade tensions strengthened the dollar and dampened demand for safe-haven metals. Last week, US President Donald Trump signaled openness to lowering Chinese tariffs, while Beijing exempted certain US goods from its 125% levies. Washington is also holding further trade talks with other major economies this week including Japan and South Korea. Meanwhile, China expressed confidence in meeting its full-year growth target of around 5% but refrained from introducing immediate...
Gold price (XAU/USD) maintains its offered tone through the Asian session on Monday and currently trades below the $3,300 round-figure mark, down 0.75% for the day. Despite mixed signals from the US and China, investors remain hopeful over the potential de-escalation of tensions between the world's two largest economies. Moreover, a fall in China's gold consumption in the first quarter of 2025 turns out to be a key factor undermining demand for the traditional safe-haven bullion. Meanwhile, prospects for more aggressive policy easing by the Federal Reserve (Fed) fail to assist the US Dollar...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is extending loses for the second successive session on Monday. The AUD/USD pair is under pressure as the US Dollar (USD) strengthens amid signs of easing tensions between the US and China. China exempted certain US imports from its 125% tariffs on Friday, according to business sources. The move has fueled hopes that the prolonged trade war between the world's two largest economies might be drawing to a close. However, Reuters cited a Chinese embassy spokesperson on Friday, who firmly denied any current negotiations with the US, stating, "China and the US are...
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...