Hong Kong stocks rose 98 points, or 0.4%, to 24,607 in early trading on Monday, ending a four-day losing streak amid gains led by the property and technology sectors. Sentiment improved after China's top leaders pledged to support the economy and tackle "irregular competition" at last week's Politburo meeting. Beijing also confirmed plans to hold its fourth plenary session in October, which will likely focus on the next five-year plan. A modest rebound in US stock futures added support, following Wall Street's sharp decline on Friday due to weak employment data. On tariffs, US Treasury...
WTI crude prices settled above $73 a barrel on Thursday, paring earlier losses as investors weighed a sharp rise in U.S. fuel inventories against concerns about tighter supplies. The latest EIA report showed a nearly 1 million-barrel drop in U.S. crude inventories last week, the seventh straight decline, but also a significant increase of 6.3 million barrels in gasoline and 6.1 million in distillates. Meanwhile, OPEC production fell in December after two months of growth, as UAE field maintenance offset gains, including an increase in Nigerian output. Russian oil production also fell...
The EUR/USD pair trades in negative territory for the third consecutive day around 1.0310 during the early European session on Thursday. The downbeat German November Factory Orders and the expectation of aggressive rate cuts by the European Central Bank (ECB) this year weigh on the Euro (EUR) against the Greenback. Later on Thursday, the Eurozone Retail Sales for November and the Fedspeak will be in focus. German Factory Orders sank lower unexpectedly in November, with the figure falling by 5.4% MoM in November, compared to a decline of 1.5% in the previous reading, the Federal Statistics...
Gold price (XAU/USD) drifts lower during the Asian session on Thursday and moves away from a four-week top, around the $2,670 area touched the previous day. The US Dollar (USD) stands firm near a two-year peak touched last week in the wake of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) hawkish shift, which, in turn, is seen as a key factor undermining the non-yielding yellow metal. In fact, the Fed indicated that it would slow the pace of interest rate cuts in 2025 amid a still resilient US economy, signs that the US labor market remained robust and sticky inflation. That said, concerns about US...
Silver price (XAG/USD) continues its upward momentum, rising for the sixth consecutive day to trade near $30.10 per troy ounce, close to three-week highs during Thursday's Asian session. The precious metal, often considered a safe-haven asset, gains support amid uncertainty surrounding inflation and potential tariffs under President-elect Trump's administration, as highlighted by the US Federal Reserve (Fed).In addition, robust growth in 2024 has boosted industrial demand for Silver, which is on track to surpass 700 million ounces (Moz) for the first time. This surge is driven by its...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) gains some positive traction following the release of stronger wage growth data from Japan earlier this Thursday and for now, seems to have snapped a three-day losing streak against its American counterpart. Moreover, talks that large Japanese firms are likely to increase wages by about 5% on average in 2025 and broadening inflationary pressures back the case for another rate hike by the Bank of Japan (BoJ). Apart from this, the cautious market mood, persistent geopolitical risks and concerns about US President-elect Donald Trump's tariff plans underpin the safe-haven...