West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US crude oil benchmark, is trading around $65.75 during the early Asian trading hours on Friday. The WTI price tumbles amid concerns about a supply hike for August by OPEC+, a surprise increase in US crude inventories, and intensifying US tariff pressures. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) agreed at a July 6 meeting to hike their collective crude production by 548,000 barrels per day (bpd), as they continue to unwind a set of voluntary supply cuts. The group previously announced hikes of 411,000 bpd for May, June,...
Gold steadied after a two-day climb as traders focused on tariff threats from President Donald Trump and the outlook for US monetary policy. Bullion traded above $3,332 an ounce, after posting modest gains on Wednesday and Thursday that pared a weekly drop. The president proposed a slew of country-specific tariffs this week, including moves against Canada and Brazil, while pushing the overall deadline for implementation to Aug. 1. In addition, he's planning a substantial levy on imports of copper. Elsewhere, investors were considering the outlook for US...
The US dollar index climbed toward 98 on Friday, on track for a nearly 1% weekly gain, as investors responded to fresh tariff announcements and evolving monetary policy signals. President Trump ramped up trade tensions throughout the week, unveiling a 35% tariff on Canadian imports starting August 1 and signaling 15% to 20% blanket tariffs on most other trading partners. Earlier in the week, the administration also announced 50% duties on copper imports and Brazilian goods, all set to take effect on the same date. On the monetary policy front, Chicago Fed's Goolsbee pushed back against the...