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 Nikkei 225 rose 132 points, or 0.25%, to close at 50,420 on Tuesday, the final trading day of the year, reversing previous losses and securing a robust 28.1% gain for 2025. It marked the index's third straight annual advance, supported by Japan's steady economic recovery, resilient corporate earnings, and easing global trade headwinds, which helped offset growing concerns over the Bank of Japan's gradual rate-hike path amid lingering cost pressures. Gains were driven by select heavyweight stocks despite broader sector weakness, with Fujitsu jumping 2.3%, Murata Manufacturing rising...
Japan's Nikkei stock index closed slightly lower at 50,339.48 on the final trading day of 2025, down 0.4%. This decline was driven by weakness in metals and brokerage stocks. Nevertheless, the Nikkei recorded a gain of around 26% throughout 2025, led by chip and construction stocks, which posted excellent performance. Several large companies, such as Kioxia Holdings, which surged more than sixfold, and SoftBank Group, which posted a 92% gain in 2025, contributed to the Nikkei's performance. Furthermore, construction companies such as Taisei and Shimizu also saw their share prices more than...
The Tokyo stock market this morning saw a slightly higher opening for the Nikkei 225 index, which opened at around 50,691.22 points. This figure is slightly higher than the previous close, signaling that investors are trying to maintain a positive trend amidst thin market activity ahead of the year-end. Market sentiment this morning was influenced by global news and Japanese economic data. Although the index remains high year-on-year, up more than 25% in a year, investors remain wary of reduced liquidity and uncertainty ahead of the long year-end holidays. Many market participants are...
Asia-Pacific stock markets mostly fell on Tuesday, as the final days of the year approached. Pressure came from Wall Street, where a sell-off in technology stocks continued due to investor concerns about a potential artificial intelligence (AI) bubble. This negative sentiment spread to Asian markets and made market participants cautious. In the United States, Nvidia shares fell more than 1% on Monday, paring some of last week's sharp gains. Other technology stocks such as Palantir Technologies, Meta Platforms, and Oracle also weakened. Similarly, Wall Street's major indices closed in the...
Stocks fell on Monday, driven by losses in the technology sector, after the S&P 500 hit a record high last week. The S&P 500 fell 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 152 points, or 0.3%. The artificial intelligence sector was slightly pressured in the trading session. Nvidia shares fell more than 1%, giving back some of their more than 5% gain in the previous week. Palantir Technologies and Meta Platforms also suffered losses, as did Oracle. "Given the light economic calendar this week, internal momentum could be the main story in the...
European stocks closed slightly higher on Monday, supported by gains for auto producers and tech companies as markets continued to gauge the European geopolitical landscape for hints on whether the strong momentum for equities can be extended to next year. The STOXX 50 rose 0.2% to 5,5757 and the pan-European STOXX 600 inched higher to 589. Tech companies led the gains despite broad weakness for their counterparts traded in Wall Street, with ASML and Nokia advancing 1% each. German auto manufacturers were also higher, with BMW and Mercedes Benz adding 1%. On the other hand, defense stocks...
The Hang Seng fell 184 points, or 0.7%, to close at 25,635 on Monday, reversing modest gains from the previous session, as markets entered the final trading week of 2025. Early strength was erased after sentiment turned sour amid renewed geopolitical tensions, following China's large-scale military drills around Taiwan. Sentiment was further weighed by China data, where profits at industrial firms fell the highest over a year in November, due to persistently weak domestic demand. All sectors retreated, with property and consumers among the biggest laggards, even as Beijing renewed its...
The Nikkei 225 lost 315 points, or 0.6%, to close at 50,376 on Monday, reversing the prior session's gains as trading thinned ahead of year-end holidays. Sentiment turned cautious after China staged large-scale military drills around Taiwan under its "Justice Mission 2025" exercise. Investors also pared risk ahead of Tuesday's release of minutes from the U.S. Fed's latest meeting. Earlier this month, the Fed cut rates but signaled a more cautious easing path, projecting only one more cut next year. Major laggards included Advantest Corp. (-2.3%), Daikin Industries (-2.0%), Japan Tobacco...
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....