Gold (XAU/USD) Gold (XAU/USD) regains ground on Friday, edging modestly higher after earlier weakness, even as a resilient US Dollar (USD) caps upside momentum. At the time of writing, XAU/USD trades around $4,345, recovering from a daily low near $4,309. The precious metal briefly surged toward record highs on Thursday after US inflation data undershot expectations. However, gains quickly faded as softer inflation lifted risk appetite across equity markets and pushed Gold back within the range established earlier this week. That said, the downside appears limited, as a dovish Federal...
The Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.8% to above 37,200 while the broader Topix Index gained 0.6% to 2,733 on Friday, reversing losses from the previous session as investors reacted to the latest inflation report. Japan's headline inflation remained steady at 3.6% in April, but the core inflation rate accelerated more than expected to 3.5%, the highest in over two years. This reinforces expectations that the Bank of Japan will continue tightening monetary policy in response to sustained inflationary pressures. Investor sentiment was also buoyed by falling US Treasury yields, with the benchmark...
U.S. stocks closed mostly flat on Thursday as investors weighed the impact of President Trump's newly passed tax and spending bill on growing concerns over the ballooning U.S. deficit. The S&P 500 and Dow closed slightly lower, while the Nasdaq rose 0.3%. Wall Street remained cautious, with the bill — featuring tax cuts and increased defense spending — now heading to the Senate and potentially adding trillions of dollars to the $36 trillion national debt. The Congressional Budget Office pegs the cost at nearly $4 trillion, stoking concerns of fiscal instability. The bond market...
European stocks fell on Thursday as worries over rising bond yields curbed investor appetite for risky assets. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 0.6% by the close, following steep declines Wednesday across US markets after a disappointing Treasury auction sent yields surging. Consumer products and autos were the biggest laggards, while the personal care and chemical sectors outperformed. Renewable-energy stocks, including Orsted A/S and Vestas Wind Systems A/S, fell after House Republicans released a new version of the tax and spending bill that...
The three major averages in the US swung between small gains and losses on Thursday, as investors weighed ongoing concerns about the nation's fiscal outlook. The House narrowly passed President Trump's new tax bill, which is expected to widen the budget deficit by nearly $3 billion over the next decade and includes a $4 trillion increase in the US debt ceiling. The legislation now heads to the Senate, with a vote anticipated by August. Meanwhile, market participants are monitoring developments on the trade front and awaiting the release of flash S&P Global PMI data, which will offer an...
The Hang Seng fell 283 points or 1.2% to close at 23,544 on Thursday, ending a two-day winning streak amid losses in global stocks following a sell-off on Wall Street due to concerns over U.S. fiscal stability. Meanwhile, President Trump pushed to pass a major spending and tax-cut package through Congress. The index retreated from a near two-month high, with sharp declines in tech, property, and consumer stocks. Limiting further weakness were reports that Morgan Stanley raised its 2025 GDP forecast for China to 4.5% and 4.2% for 2024, citing easing Sino-U.S. trade tensions and expected...
Japan stocks were lower after the close on Thursday, as losses in the Paper & Pulp, Transport and Communication sectors led shares lower. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.92%. The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (TYO:5801), which rose 11.33% or 635.00 points to trade at 6,238.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd. (TYO:5802) added 2.61% or 68.50 points to end at 2,693.00 and Mitsubishi Logistics Corp. (TYO:9301) was up 2.33% or 25.50 points to 1,118.00 in late trade. The worst performers of the...
Europe stocks fall at open; EasyJet shares down 3% after earningsIt's ten minutes after the opening bell, and European markets are trading in negative territory. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index is 0.5% lower, with almost every sector in the red. Looking at regional bourses, the German DAX and French CAC 40 are both down by around 0.5%, while London's FTSE 100 has shed 0.4%. EasyJet reported a loss for the first six months of the year, but said current bookings indicate it will meet expectations for full-year profit. The airline said it made a pre-tax loss of £394 million ($529 million)...
Shares in Hong Kong fell 105 points or 0.4% to 23,717 on Thursday morning session, snapping gains in the prior two sessions following a tumble on Wall Street overnight as concerns mounted that a new budget bill in the U.S. would put more stress on an already large deficit. Markets retreated from their nearly two-month highs, hit the previous day, as broad-based losses across all sectors particularly property, consumer, and tech weighed on sentiment. Limiting further falls were upbeat notes from UBS highlighting a sharp revival in Hong Kong's IPO market in 2025, with year-to-date proceeds...
Gold rises in the early Asian trade. There's a broad commodities uptrend, driven by macro uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and persistent demand for "hard" assets, says Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst...
Oil extended declines after OPEC+ agreed to a bigger-than-expected production increase next month, raising concerns about oversupply just as US tariffs fan fears about the demand outlook.
Brent...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakened against its US counterpart and reversed part of Friday's recovery from the lowest level since July 23 following Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda's remarks....