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...
Stocks sold off on Friday as fresh U.S. data fueled investor concerns about a slowing economy and high inflation, sending them seeking safer assets. The losses deepened as traders worried about a weekend that could bring another barrage of headlines from the Trump administration, which has proposed a series of tariffs and other market-moving policy changes since taking office a month ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 724 points, or 1.6%, bringing its two-day loss to more than 1,200 points. Friday's loss was its biggest of the year. The S&P 500 traded 1.6% lower, falling for a...
European stocks closed slightly higher on Friday, paring losses from record highs earlier in the week as markets digested the latest PMI data and a slew of corporate earnings, while preparing for Germany's general election over the weekend. The STOXX 50 gained 0.3% and the STOXX 600 gained 0.5%. Private sector activity in the euro zone remained in slight expansion as strength in service providers offset another period of contraction for manufacturers. On the political front, the center-right CDU led the latest polls and the incumbent center-left SPD dropped to third place. Air Liquide jumped...
US stocks fluctuated on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hovering near the flatline, while the Dow Jones dropped around 280 points. The health and energy sectors were among the biggest laggards. Shares of UnitedHealth plunged almost 10% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department has launched an investigation into the company's Medicare billing practices in recent months, citing sources familiar with the matter. On the other hand, communication services outperformed. Also, AI-related stocks traded higher, including Nvidia (0.6%), boosted by strong earnings...
European stock markets were trading higher on Friday morning after a sell-off on Wall Street as earnings remain in focus for investors. The regional Stoxx 600 was up by 0.3%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX were marginally higher by 0.1% at 8:10 a.m. London time. Meanwhile, France's CAC 40 was up 0.4% and Italy's MIB rose by 0.3%. European firms Kingspan Group, Air Liquide, Sika AG and others reported their fourth-quarter earnings. Standard Chartered for instance beat market expectations, and is now trading up by nearly 5%. Source: CNBC
The Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.26% to close at 38,777, while the broader Topix Index edged up 0.07% to 2,737 on Friday, reversing earlier losses. The rebound followed comments from Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda, who stated that the central bank is prepared to increase government bond purchases if long-term interest rates rise sharply. Meanwhile, data showed that core inflation in Japan accelerated to 3.2% in January, up from 3% in December, exceeding forecasts of 3.1%. Headline inflation also rose to 4%, up from 3.6%, the highest level in two years. These figures reinforced expectations...
Hong Kong shares hit a three-year high Friday, leading gains in the region as investors weighed inflation data from Japan against tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 3.76% to its highest level since February 2022, according to data from LSEG. The Hang Seng Tech index added 6.15%. Shares of Hong Kong listed Alibaba rose 14.7% following a significant profit increase for the company in the December quarter, driven by growth in its Cloud Intelligence division and e-commerce sector. Mainland China's CSI 300 rose 1.26% to close at 3,978.44. Japan's...
Asia-Pacific markets trade mixed Friday as investors assessed inflation data from Japan, while the threat of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs dents investor sentiment. Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 0.43%, while the Topix declined 0.33%. Japan's inflation rate in January climbed to 4%, hitting its highest level since January 2023. Core inflation — which excludes prices of fresh food — rose to 3.2%, beating Reuters' expectations of 3.1%.South Korea's Kospi traded 0.42% lower while the small-cap Kosdaq added 0.43%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 2.25%, while the Hang Seng Tech index added...
(Hong Kong) The Hang Seng Index has opened with a notable increase of 513 points, or 2.27%, reaching 23,090 points. Meanwhile, the National Enterprises Index rose by 203 points, equivalent to 2.45%, settling at 8,526 points. The Technology Index also saw significant gains, climbing 184 points, or 3.36%, to 5,684 points.Leading the charge were technology stocks, with Alibaba experiencing a remarkable surge of 10% after its earnings report. Tencent rose by 3.7%, Meituan by 1.2%, Xiaomi Group by 1.8%, JD.com by 4.5%, Kuaishou by 4.5%, and Bilibili saw an impressive increase of 9.4%.In the...
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....