US Stocks plunged on Friday, as investors reacted to a weak July jobs report and a fresh round of tariffs announced by President Trump. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell 1.6% and 2.2%, their steepest drops since April, while the Dow lost 542 points. Payrolls rose by just 73,000 in July, far below expectations, with sharp downward revisions to prior months signaling deeper labor market weakness. Treasury yields fell and the odds of a September Fed rate cut rose above 80%. Sentiment worsened after new tariffs of 10% to 41% were imposed on imports from key partners including Canada, India, and...
EUR/USD dipped below the psychological resistance of 1.0500 on Tuesday. The major currency pair remained fragile as the US Dollar (USD) strengthened on expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will take a slightly hawkish stance after cutting its key lending rate by 25 basis points (bps) to 4.25%-4.50% on Wednesday. According to the CME FedWatch tool, traders have priced in a 25 bps rate cut for Wednesday's policy meeting. The data also showed that the Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged at its January meeting. Analysts at Macquarie said that the Fed's stance could shift "slightly...
The AUD/USD pair fell to a yearly low around 0.6340 during the European session on Tuesday. The Aussie pair weakened as the US Dollar (USD) moved higher amid strong expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) could signal a more gradual policy easing approach at its policy meeting on Wednesday after cutting interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) to 4.25%-4.50%. Source: FXStreet
Oil prices fell on Tuesday as Chinese economic data renewed demand concerns, while investors remained cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision. Brent crude futures were down 32 cents at $73.59 a barrel by 0949 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 44 cents at $70.27 a barrel. Prices were "weighed down by profit-taking after last week's 6% rally and a batch of disappointing Chinese economic data yesterday," said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore. Prices fell from multi-week highs on Monday on unexpectedly weak consumer spending data from...
The dollar strengthened on Tuesday ahead of an expected interest rate cut in the United States, as traders grew more confident that the Federal Reserve will gradually lower borrowing costs next year. The euro, which is set to lose nearly 5% against the dollar this year, was trading at $1.04823 ahead of the Fed decision. The gap between U.S. and German 10-year yields is 216 basis points, near its widest in five years, after rising nearly 70 basis points in three months, further weighing on the euro. The Fed hands down its interest rate decision on Wednesday and interest rate futures imply...
Gold prices slide ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting, with traders cautiously waiting for cues on the U.S. central bank's outlook for 2025. Futures trade 0.4% lower at $2,652.75 a troy ounce. A widely anticipated 25-basis-point rate cut is already fully priced into markets, according to analysts, but further cuts are less certain. Meanwhile, U.S. PMI data showed the services sector rose at a faster-than-expected pace. "The resilience of the U.S. economy supports our view that the Fed's 2025 rate cutting cycle is likely to be shallow," ANZ Research analysts say. "We expect a...