Gold prices rose by around 1.7% to around US$4,134 per troy ounce as market participants became increasingly confident that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates at its December 9-10 meeting. Dovish comments from Fed Governor Christopher Waller and New York Fed President John Williams fueled expectations of a rate cut, particularly amid signs of weakness in the US labor market and the delay in several data releases due to the government shutdown. Swap traders now assess the probability of a December rate cut at nearly 80%, although there are still differing views within the Fed...
GBP/USD traded flat and hovered around the 1.3100 level at the start of the week, as trading momentum slowed. Market participants faced a very short week due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the US: US markets were closed on Thursday and only open for a half-day on Friday. In practice, there were only three effective days when both London and New York markets were active, so cable movement tended to be limited. On the fundamental side, expectations that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates for the third consecutive time in December remained quite strong. The FedWatch Tool showed the...
Oil prices moved steadily in Tuesday morning trading, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) holding near US$59 per barrel after rising more than 1% on Monday, while Brent closed above US$63 per barrel. Risk-on sentiment in global financial markets supported prices, as stocks and other commodities rallied on expectations of further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. The optimistic mood was also supported by the latest talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping following last month's tariff truce agreement. On the geopolitical front, the market is closely...