The Nikkei 225 fell 2% to below 40,000 and the broader Topix index fell 1.8% to 2,895 on Monday (August 4), with both indexes hitting near two-week lows as Japanese stocks followed Wall Street's sharp decline. The sell-off followed US President Donald Trump's massive retaliatory tariffs of 10% to 41% on several trading partners, alongside a weaker-than-expected US jobs report that deepened economic concerns. Domestically, investors awaited the minutes of the Bank of Japan's latest policy meeting for clues on the timing of its next interest rate hike. Technology stocks led the decline, with...
Gold (XAU/USD) prices attracted some follow-through sellers at the start of a new week and retreated further from near three-week highs, around the $2,665 region touched on Friday. Prospects for a slower pace of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in 2025 remained supportive of the uptick in the US Treasury bond yields and turned out to be a key factor undermining the non-yielding yellow metal. Additionally, a positive risk tone exerted additional pressure on the safe-haven commodity and contributed to its offered tone for the second consecutive day. Meanwhile, the US Dollar...
Silver prices held steady around $29.50 an ounce on Monday as investors cautiously await key US economic data that could influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy outlook. Among the upcoming reports, the market is mainly focused on the US monthly jobs report due on Friday, which could provide insight into whether silver will recover further. The white metal is also getting support from the positive economic outlook in China, the world's largest silver consumer. Beijing recently pledged "more proactive" macroeconomic policies and lower interest rates this year to stimulate...
After a solid start to the year yesterday, broad dollar gains have been checked back somewhat, leaving the Dollar Index (DXY) in consolidation mode into the weekend, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategist Shaun Osborne notes.Some restraint in the dollar's overall advance would not be too surprising, despite its robust performance in the past couple of weeks. Fundamentals are favourable and seasonal trends suggest that strength is likely to persist through Q1. But the gains in the DXY are looking stretched relative to our fair value estimate based on rate differentials alone." "There is a Trump...
The Gold price (XAU/USD) struggles to gain ground near $2,640 during the early Asian trading hours on Monday. The stronger US Dollar (USD) after the US ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) weighs on the yellow metal. All eyes will be on the US labor market data for December on Friday for fresh impetus. Data released by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) on Friday showed that the US Manufacturing PMI rose to 49.3 in December from 48.4 in November. This reading was above the market consensus of 48.4. The upbeat data has lifted the Greenback and dragged the USD-denominated...
The USD/CHF pair weakens to near 0.9110, snapping the four-day winning streak during the early European session on Friday. The safe-haven flows demand amid the persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict boosts the Swiss Franc (CHF) against the Greenback. On Thursday, Joe Biden reportedly discussed plans to attack Iran's nuclear facilities in the event Tehran moved closer to building a nuclear bomb before Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20, three sources with knowledge of the issue tell Axios. Investors will closely monitor the...