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...
Gold rose above $2,680 on Friday, recovering slightly from a more than 1% drop in the previous session, as investors continued to assess the latest economic data. U.S. factory-rate prices rose more than expected in November, fueling concerns that inflation may remain above the Federal Reserve's target into next year. However, initial jobless claims unexpectedly jumped to a nearly two-month high, far surpassing forecasts, underscoring the risk of a weakening labor market. Markets still largely expect a 25bps hike by the Fed next week and are pricing in further rate cuts next year, although...
The dollar index rose above 107 on Friday, positioning it for a 1% gain for the week, marking its best weekly performance in a month. The gains came as markets had priced in a 25 basis point interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week, although the outlook for 2025 remains uncertain. Data released on Thursday showed the headline producer price index rose more than expected, while the core index slowed in line with forecasts. Additionally, initial jobless claims unexpectedly rose to a nearly two-month high of 242,000, well above the 220,000 anticipated. Markets are now pricing in...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) held firm against its US counterpart, lifting the USD/JPY pair near the 153.00 level, or a fresh monthly peak during the Asian session on Friday. Recent media reports suggested that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will not raise interest rates at its upcoming policy meeting next week, which in turn, further undermined the JPY. Moreover, expectations for a less dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) continued to support higher US Treasury bond yields and further weighed on the lower-yielding JPY. Meanwhile, the BOJ's quarterly Tankan survey released today showed that business...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) continued to weaken against the US Dollar (USD) on Friday. The threat of tariffs from the Trump administration has boosted the US Dollar (USD) across the board and created a headwind for the AUD/USD pair. Additionally, speculation about a potential 10% tariff on Chinese goods could drag the AUD lower as China has been Australia's largest trading partner. The AUD gained support after the release of mixed domestic employment data on Thursday. The seasonally adjusted Employment Change rose by 35,600, bringing the total number of employed people to 14,535,500 in...
Gold prices (XAU/USD) recovered from a dip to around $2,690 during Asian trading hours on Friday after falling from a five-week high in the previous session. All eyes will be on the US Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate decision next week. Gold purchases by central banks, including the People's Bank of China (PBOC), could provide some support to the yellow metal. China's central bank resumed gold purchases in November after a six-month hiatus, increasing its reserves to 72.96 million troy ounces. The move comes as Beijing signals a shift to a "moderately loose" monetary policy, with...
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...