Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one thing: geopolitical headlines are still more "noise" than signals of a short-term surplus. As of 3:50 PM WIB, Brent was at $69.60/barrel (+0.29%) and WTI was at $64.83/barrel (+0.31%). The gains were moderate, but enough to keep prices near the psychological $70 level for Brent. From a geopolitical perspective, market focus is on the potential for escalation in the Middle East. Recent reports...
European stocks closed near the flatline on Tuesday (25/2), the fourth straight session of flat movement as markets continued to assess the prospect of higher government spending by European governments and the impact of trade barriers imposed by the U.S. The eurozone STOXX 50 closed 0.1% lower at 5,448 and the pan-European STOXX 600 gained 0.2% to 554. German carmakers were among the biggest gainers despite U.S. President Trump's announcement that the U.S. would follow through on earlier tariff threats against Mexico, a major manufacturing hub for European writers. Volkswagen, BMW and...
The S&P 500 hovered around the flatline on Tuesday, while the Nasdaq slipped 0.4% following three consecutive sessions of losses. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones added about 100 points. Investor sentiment remained pressured by geopolitical and trade tensions after President Trump confirmed that tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports, previously paused for a month, will take effect next week. Additionally, reports surfaced that the US is tightening restrictions on China's chip industry.Tech, communication services, and utilities were the worst-performing sectors, while real estate, materials,...
European equities rose on Tuesday as gains for healthcare and defense stocks offset declines for technology companies. Shares of Unilever Plc fell after the surprise exit of its CEO. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was up 0.1% at 8:23 a.m. in London. The health-care sector outperformed as Smith & Nephew Plc jumped after earnings beat expectations while shares of tech giant Novo Nordisk A/S also rose. Defense stocks got a boost from news that Germany is discussing a €200 billion ($209 billion) emergency defense fund. Among decliners, concerns over potentially tighter U.S. restrictions on...
The Hang Seng Index plunged 307 points, or 1.3%, to close at 23,034 on Tuesday (25/2), marking its second straight decline. The selloff came as the Trump administration pushed for tighter U.S. chip restrictions and urged key allies to tighten curbs on China's semiconductor industry. The decline also followed a sharp drop in U.S.-listed Chinese stocks overnight, with the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index plunging 5.2%, its worst one-day loss since October, amid profit-taking after strong earnings and AI-driven optimism. Investors are cautious ahead of China's official February PMI data due...
European stocks are expected to open in mixed territory Tuesday as a lukewarm mood pervades global markets. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open unchanged at 8,637, Germany's DAX down 29 points at 22,381, France's CAC 2 points lower at 8,084 and Italy's FTSE MIB 27 points higher at 38,542, according to data from IG. Earnings come from Fresenius Medical Care, Smith & Nephew, Heidelberg Materials and Alcon. On the data front, a more complete picture of Germany's fourth-quarter gross domestic product data will be released on Tuesday.European stocks traded in mixed territory at...
Asia-Pacific markets traded lower Tuesday after Wall Street fell overnight as Trump tariffs stoke a risk-off mood, while investors assesed Bank of Korea's rate decision. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.87%.Japan's Nikkei 225 declined 1.34%, while the Topix slipped 0.72%. South Korea's Kospi traded 0.5% lower while the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.44%. South Korea's central bank expectedly cut rates to 2.75% from 3%, as it strives to stimulate a slowing economy. The Korean won is currently trading atSouth Korea has been facing political uncertainty, stemming from the impeachment proceedings...
(Hong Kong) The Hang Seng Index opened down 625 points, or 2.67%, reaching 22,716 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 239 points, or 2.77%, to 8,379 points, while the Technology Index declined by 249 points, or 4.3%, to settle at 5,540 points. Technology stocks faced significant selling pressure, with Tencent down 3.9%, Alibaba plunging 7.8%, Meituan falling by 3.9%, Xiaomi Group down 3.4%, JD.com declining 5%, and Kuaishou dropping 5.2%. Following its earnings report, Trip.com saw a decrease of 3.2%. The financial sector also experienced a downward trend, though HSBC...
The Nikkei 225 Index fell 1.4% to below 38,300, while the broader Topix Index dropped 0.7% to 2,717 on Tuesday, marking a five-week low as Japanese stocks tracked losses on Wall Street overnight. The downturn was fueled by a pullback in technology and artificial intelligence stocks, sparking concerns that the AI-driven rally may be losing momentum. However, some analysts believe the AI sector could continue to thrive for years to come. Meanwhile, traders in Japan are awaiting a series of economic reports set for Friday, which may offer fresh insights into the Bank of Japan's future...
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....