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...
The Hang Seng fell 72 points, or 0.4%, to close at 19,688 on Monday after trading slightly higher in the morning, dragged down by losses across sectors. Sentiment turned sour as China's markets slumped to a near three-month low, down for a fourth session amid growing concerns over a sluggish recovery and trade risks as Trump returns to the White House. Limiting losses was a private sector survey that showed China's services activity rose the most in seven months in December, even as overseas orders fell and cost pressures increased. Meanwhile, the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses met with...
Japanese stocks fell after the close on Monday, as losses in the Shipbuilding, Precision Instruments and Communications sectors led shares lower. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was down 1.65%. The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Ebara Corp. (TYO:6361), which rose 5.71% or 140.50 points to trade at 2,601.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (TYO:5801) gained 5.40% or 361.00 points to close at 7,046.00 and Suzuki Motor Corp. (TYO:7269) gained 5.17% or 92.50 points to 1,882.50 in late trade. The worst performers on the session were DeNA Co Ltd...
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Monday as investors assessed business activity figures from several key economies in the region. China's Caixin services purchasing managers' index from S&P Global rose to 52.2 in December, which marked the service sector's fastest expansion since May 2024. China's central bank said over the weekend it would implement a "moderately loose" monetary policy in 2025 as it seeks to boost growth. Separately, Hong Kong's PMI declined in December compared to the month before. December PMI figures for India will also be released Monday.Hong Kong's Hang Seng...
The au Jibun Bank Japan Services PMI was revised lower to 50.9 in December 2024 from a flash reading of 51.4. The latest result followed November's print of 50.5, marking the second consecutive month of growth in the service sector and the strongest pace since September. New orders increased for the sixth straight month, with the growth rate reaching its strongest since August. Employment also rose, marking the 15th month of gains, though the rise was modest. Meanwhile, outstanding business accumulated for the second month in a row, with the growth rate marginal but surpassing the long-run...
The S&P Global Hong Kong SAR PMI eased to 51.1 in December 2024, down from 51.2 in November, marking the third consecutive month of private sector expansion, though at its slowest pace in the current sequence. Growth in new business softened as demand from both Mainland China and international markets weakened, leading to slower output growth. Companies remained cautious and opted to reduce staffing levels, although they continued to increase their inventory of input products. At the same time, pricing pressures remained subdued, contributing to the sharpest decline in average selling...
Asia-Pacific markets mostly climbed Monday, with investors awaiting business activity figures from several key economies in the region. China's Caixin services purchasing managers' index from S&P Global is due later in the day. Market reaction in China will also be in focus after the country's central bank said over the weekend it would implement a "moderately loose" monetary policy in 2025.December PMI figures for India and Hong Kong will also be released MondayFutures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index last traded at 19,827, pointing to a stronger open for the index compared to the HSI's...
US stocks closed higher on Friday, ending the first week of the new year on a positive note ahead of data that should provide more insights on the health of the largest economy in the world. At close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8%, the S&P 500 index rose 1.3%, and the NASDAQ Composite index climbed 1.7%. The main Wall Street indexes reported stellar gains in 2024, but expectations of slower interest rate cuts and uncertainty over policies under incoming President Donald Trump have chipped away at this sentiment. In a relatively quiet day for economic data, investors will...
U.S. stocks moved higher on Friday as Wall Street tried to shake off a volatile start to the new year. The S&P 500 rose 1.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 319 points, or about 0.9%. The Nasdaq Composite gained about 1.6%. Tech stocks were a bright spot for the market on Friday. Chip giant Nvidia climbed 4%, while server maker Super Micro Computer jumped 6%. Tesla rose 4% to lead the consumer discretionary group. Friday's move came off a choppy trading session on Thursday that saw stocks close lower after a morning rally. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have fallen for five...
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....