Oil headed for the biggest weekly loss since late June as traders positioned for a key OPEC+ decision on supply this weekend. Brent futures edged marginally higher on Friday, but were still trading below $65 a barrel and set for a weekly slump of about 8%. Prices have declined the past four days on the expectation OPEC+ will discuss fast-tracking more supply hikes. Meanwhile, efforts by the Trump administration to keep oil exports flowing from northern Iraq, as well as a US government shutdown, have added to the bearish sentiment. The OPEC+ meeting comes as...
The STOXX 50 rose 0.9% and the STOXX 600 gained 0.6% on Thursday, in line with a rise in global equities. The rally was driven by optimism following the U.S. CPI report, which reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve has room to continue cutting interest rates this year. Meanwhile, traders were also focused on corporate results, with Richemont shares jumping more than 15% after the luxury company reported a 10% jump in Q3 sales. The luxury sector received a boost from the news, with LVMH (8%), Kering (9%), Moncler (7.6%) and Hermes (5.1%) surging. ASML Holding (3.5%), L'Oreal (2.6%)...
The Hang Seng rose 237 points, or 1.2%, to close at 19,523 on Thursday (16/1), marking its third straight day of gains after a strong session on Wall Street on Wednesday, amid growing bets on a potential Fed rate cut this year following a slowdown in U.S. core inflation. The index was at its highest in a week after dropping to a nearly four-month low last week, boosted by reports from Chinese state media that the central bank may cut RRRs for commercial banks before the Spring Festival in late January, providing more liquidity for the economy. Traders shrugged off news that the U.S....
Japanese stocks rose after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Banking, Services and Electricity/Machinery sectors helped stocks advance. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.32%. The best performers on the Nikkei 225 were Hino Motors, Ltd. (TYO:7205), which rose 9.49%, or 48.40 points, to trade at 558.60 at the close. Meanwhile, Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (TYO:5801) gained 7.68%, or 507.00 points, to close at 7,110.00 and Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd. (TYO:7735) rose 5.48% or 550.00 points to close at 10,585.00 in the last trade. The worst performers on the session were...
European markets are expected to open in mixed territory Thursday, retreating from gains in the previous trading session as traders cheered a cooler-than-expected inflation print in the U.S. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 9 points higher at 8,306, Germany's DAX down 26 points at 20,595, France's CAC down 15 points at 7,475 and Italy's FTSE MIB up 8 points at 35,705, according to data from IG. Trading updates are set to come from Whitbread, Deliveroo and Richemont, while Rio Tinto releases its latest operational review. Data releases include German inflation figures and...
Shares in Hong Kong soared 319 points or 1.7% to 19,594 on Thursday morning session, holding their bullish momentum for the third session following an overnight rally on Wall Street on the back of an unexpected decline in US core inflation figures for December and robust bank earnings. Markets reached their highest level in a week, rebounding from a near 4-month low, touched last week, buoyed by robust gains across sectors. Li Ning surged nearly 3.0% after reclaiming the official sportswear partnership with the Chinese Olympic Committee. Additionally, UBTech Robotics climbed over 2% after...
Asia-Pacific markets climbed Thursday, after U.S. markets soared on the back of an unexpected decline in core inflation numbers in December and strong bank earnings.Korea's central bank surprised market watchers by keeping benchmark rates unchanged at 3%. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the Bank of Korea to cut its policy rate by 25 basis points.South Korea's Kospi was up 1.16% while the small-cap Kosdaq index was up 1.65%, following the announcement.Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was trading up 0.61% while the Topix gained 0.23%. Japan's annual producer price index climbed 3.8% in...
The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.8% to around 38,750, while the broader Topix index gained 0.6% to 2,706 on Thursday, recovering some losses from earlier in the week and tracking a strong performance on Wall Street. U.S. stocks surged overnight, boosted by a surprise drop in core inflation and solid bank earnings. However, investors remained cautious about Japanese equities after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda indicated on Wednesday that the central bank would discuss the possibility of raising interest rates at its next policy meeting next week. Meanwhile, data showed that Japanese producer...
Producer prices in Japan increased by 3.8% yoy in December 2024, keeping the same pace as in the previous month and aligning with market consensus. It was the 46th straight month of producer inflation, remaining at its highest level since June 2023, as cost continued to grow for transport equipment (1.7% vs 1.6% in November), beverages & foods (1.9% vs 2.1%), iron & steel (-0.1% vs -0.1%), electrical machinery (4.7% vs 4.1%), production machinery (1.8% vs 1.4%), general-purpose machinery (4.3% vs 4.3%), metal products (3.8% vs 4.0%), other manufacturing (3.6% vs 3.8%), plastics (3.6%...
Gold (XAU/USD) is extending its decline on Wednesday for a second consecutive day as the US Dollar (USD) and US Treasury yields firm ahead of the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)...
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....