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 prices held near $4,000 an ounce after a weak start on Monday, as China ended long-standing tax breaks for some retailers. This change could weigh on demand in one of the world's largest precious metals markets. Gold bullion prices for immediate delivery were trading little changed by midday in London, after falling as much as 1% in early trading. Beijing announced on Saturday that it would no longer allow some retailers to fully offset value-added tax when selling gold they purchased from the Shanghai Gold Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange. The news sent Chinese gold jewelry...
Oil prices were little changed despite news that OPEC+ plans to end its supply increases, with the market weighed down by concerns about oversupply and weak factory data in Asia. Brent crude futures fell 1 cent, or 0.02%, to $64.76 a barrel at 09:59 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3 cents, or 0.05%, to $60.95 The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+, agreed on Sunday to increase production by 137,000 barrels per day (bpd) in December and to pause increases in the first quarter of next year. Brent and WTI both...
The US dollar held near a three-month high on Monday (November 3rd) ahead of economic data this week that will provide only vague clues about the health of the US economy and could reinforce the Federal Reserve's cautious stance. The Fed cut interest rates by 25 basis points last week, as expected, but Chairman Jerome Powell hinted that it might be the central bank's last cut of the year, citing the risk of taking additional steps without a stronger economic picture. Were it not for the ongoing US government shutdown, this week's scheduled data releases, including US non-farm payrolls,...
Gold prices rose on Monday (November 3), boosted by expectations of further US interest rate cuts following comments from the US Federal Reserve Board's Christopher Waller, although a stronger dollar and easing trade tensions curbed those gains. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $4,020.45 per ounce at 09:05 GMT. US gold futures for December delivery rose 0.9% to $4,031.50. "We're still in consolidation mode. The lack of US economic data is a bit of a complicating factor, but weaker US economic data will support further Fed rate cuts and allow gold to move to $4,200 per ounce by year-end," said UBS...
China ended a long-standing tax exemption policy for some gold retailers on Saturday, potentially discouraging purchases of the precious metal in the world's largest consumer market. Beijing will remove the full 13% value-added tax (VAT) exemption on gold sold by retailers to consumers, initially purchased from the Shanghai Gold Exchange or the Shanghai Futures Exchange. The exemption was lowered to 6% on November 1, according to a new policy announced by the Ministry of Finance on Saturday. This lower exemption will be in effect until December 31, 2027. Joni Teves, a strategist at UBS...
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...