Gold price advances during the North American session on Friday as the US Dollar weakens, with traders booking profits ahead of the weekend. Additionally, a Fed Governor's comments turned more dovish than expected, supporting a rate cut in July. At the time of writing, the XAU/USD trades at $3,353, up 0.43%. The market mood is upbeat after the University of Michigan (UoM) revealed that Americans have become optimistic about the economy and expect inflation to edge lower. Recently, Fed Governor Christopher Waller suggested that the central bank should cut interest rates at the upcoming...
The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 1% to around 37,800 while the broader Topix Index gained 0.5% to 2,785 on Wednesday, snapping a three-day losing streak as gains on Wall Street fueled investor optimism. The upbeat sentiment followed a tech-driven rally in the US, where Nvidia surged nearly 3% to reclaim its title as the world's most valuable publicly traded company, overtaking Microsoft. Back in Japan, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda reiterated the central bank's readiness to raise interest rates if economic and inflation projections are met, reinforcing expectations of a cautious shift toward...
Asia-Pacific markets advanced Wednesday after Wall Street rose on the back of a tech rally, led by chipmaker Nvidia, with South Korean stocks leading gains. Shares in the artificial intelligence darling advanced nearly 3%, extending Monday's gains and driving Nvidia's market cap past Microsoft's for the first time since January. Chip companies Broadcom and Micron Technology rose more than 3% and 4%, respectively. South Korean markets rose as opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung won the presidential election. The Kospi index popped 2.44% to hit its highest level since August last year,...
U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, buoyed by tech strength, solid jobs data and hopes for progress on trade. The S&P 500 rose 0.6%, the Dow gained 214 points and the Nasdaq gained 0.8%, led by a 2.8% rally in Nvidia that briefly made it the most valuable public company. Other chipmakers such as Broadcom (+3.3%) and Micron (+4.1%) also rose sharply, adding to the chip-driven momentum. A stronger-than-expected JOLTS report showed job openings rose by 191,000 to 7.391 million in April, signaling resilience in the labor market despite trade headwinds. However, the OECD cut its 2025 U.S. growth...
European stocks closed mostly flat on Tuesday, recovering from losses of more than 1% earlier in the session after weaker-than-expected euro zone inflation data reinforced expectations for a 25 basis point interest rate cut by the ECB later this week. Meanwhile, global growth concerns weighed on sentiment after the OECD cut its outlook, projecting world GDP to slow from 3.3% in 2024 to 2.9% in 2025 and 2026, citing rising trade tensions. Adding to market jitters, political instability in the Netherlands deepened as the government collapsed over disagreements on immigration policy. In...
Stocks were little changed Tuesday, following modest gains seen in the first session of June, as growth concerns increased and traders awaited more details on potential U.S. trade deals. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each hovered around the flatline. The Nasdaq Composite, however, was higher by 0.4%. Tuesday's declines follow the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development cutting its U.S. growth outlook. The OECD now sees the U.S. economy expanding by just 1.6%, down from 2.2%. Treasury yields declined, as traders sought out safety. The benchmark 10-year...
The Hang Seng surged 354 points or 1.5% to end at 23,512 on Tuesday, reversing Monday's losses amid strength in all sectors. Hopes that President Trump and China's leader Xi Jinping may speak this week boosted sentiment, signaling a potential easing in trade tensions. Meantime, Finance Secretary Paul Chan reaffirmed Hong Kong's 2025 GDP growth target of 2% to 3%, citing solid Q1 data as well as recent monetary easing and business support measures in China. In corporate news, Vodafone and CK Hutchison finalized their UK merger, launching VodafoneThree with plans to invest £11 billion over...
European shares rebounded on Tuesday, with the Stoxx 50 and Stoxx 600 rising about 0.2%, supported by broader market gains. Investors remained focused on US trade policy developments, with some hope after the White House said Presidents Trump and Xi may speak this week, despite rising trade tensions. Caution persisted as Trump's unpredictable tariff plans continued to unsettle markets. The US administration also asked an appeals court to pause a ruling that could block new tariffs and urged countries to submit trade proposals by Wednesday. In Europe, attention turned to upcoming euro zone...
Japan stocks were lower after the close on Tuesday, as losses in the Paper & Pulp, Transport and Communication sectors led shares lower. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 declined 0.05%. The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were IHI Corp. (TYO:7013), which rose 6.07% or 875.00 points to trade at 15,280.00 at the close. Meanwhile, M3 Inc (TYO:2413) added 6.05% or 122.50 points to end at 2,146.00 and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (TYO:7012) was up 6.02% or 615.00 points to 10,825.00 in late trade. The worst performers of the session were Suzuki Motor Corp....
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....