Gold (XAU/USD) holds firm on Wednesday, with price action contained inside the recent consolidation zone as markets brace for the Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate decision. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is hovering near $4,204, down from the intraday high of $4,218. The Fed will announce its policy decision at 19:00 GMT, with markets leaning toward another 25 basis point cut that would lower the Federal Funds Rate to the 3.50%-3.75% range. Expectations for reduced borrowing costs keep Bullion broadly supported, as lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding...
Asian stock markets fluctuated at the start of the week, following the modest gains in US stocks last Friday. Investors are now turning their attention to a series of key economic data ahead of the Federal Reserve's expected interest rate cut decision this month. Amid the uncertainty, oil prices surged after OPEC+ maintained its policy of temporarily halting production increases, while silver hit another record. Meanwhile, S&P 500 futures weakened after the major US indexes briefly gained 0.5% despite technical glitches on the CME. This week will be crucial for the US economic outlook....
Japanese stock markets opened sluggishly and were immediately dragged down by concerns about the state of the United States economy and the outlook for domestic corporate earnings. The electronics and pharmaceutical sectors were the biggest drags, with NEC Corp. falling 2.2% and Sumitomo Pharma plunging 4.3%. On the currency side, USD/JPY weakened to 155.85, lower than Friday's close of 156.39, adding to market sentiment. Investors are now awaiting clear signals from Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government, particularly regarding her plans to strengthen the Japanese economy and warm...
European stocks ended Friday in positive territory as investors digested the end of a choppy month. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed the session 0.2% higher, with major bourses and most sectors in positive territory. November has been a volatile month for equities with fears of stretched AI valuations resurfacing, causing a rollercoaster of relief rallies and sell-offs adding to insights from the latest earnings season and uncertainty over monetary policy. However, global markets were buoyed this week by rising expectations of an interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve when it next...
Hong Kong Stock MarketThe Hang Seng fell 87 points or 0.3% to end at 25,859 on Friday, ending a four-day winning streak as weakness in property and financial stocks weighed on the index. Sentiment weakened amid caution ahead of China's official November PMI data due over the weekend and private survey readings next week. Traders also grew wary as major mainland benchmarks neared multi-year highs on AI-driven optimism, raising concerns about increased volatility heading into year-end. Losses were limited by a modest rise in U.S. futures ahead of a shortened Wall Street session following...
Both the STOXX 50 and the STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on the final trading day of a volatile November, as the recent rally in global equities showed signs of losing momentum and investors awaited fresh catalysts. On the data front, inflation in France unexpectedly held steady at 0.9%, while Spain's rate eased to 3%, reinforcing expectations that the ECB will maintain its current policy stance. LVMH (+0.5%), Shell (+0.7%), Siemens (+0.3%), Inditex (+0.2%), and Schneider Electric (+0.3%) traded higher, while Nestlé (-0.4%), Hermès (-0.2%), and EssilorLuxottica (-1.3%) moved...
Japanese stocks closed slightly lower on Friday, with the Nikkei 225 down 0.07% as pressure hit the Paper & Pulp, Transportation, and Communications sectors. Interestingly, amid the index's decline, some stocks still performed well. Pacific Metals surged 6.80% to 2,530.00, hitting a three-year high. Okuma Corp. rose 6.66% to 3,765.00, while Furukawa Electric gained 4.73% to 9,928.00. Mitsui Mining and Smelting led the decliners, dropping 2.14%, followed by Toho Co., which fell 2.03%, and Fujitsu, which fell 1.92%. Broadly speaking, the market was actually still positive: 2,542 stocks...
Hang Seng Menguji 26.000, Lanjut Nanjak atau Balik Turun? The Hong Kong stock market opened cautiously on Friday, November 28, 2025, with the Hang Seng Index trading slightly between 25,990 and 26,000, having closed at 25,945.93 on Thursday. Opening sentiment was still influenced by the slowdown in the global rally over the weekend, after world stock markets had rallied strongly in recent days and began to lose steam. In Asia, other stock indices also tended to move mixed, while the absence of major catalysts from Wall Street—which was closed for Thanksgiving—left the Hang Seng's direction...
Nikkei Struggles Above 50,000, a Sign of Starting Fatigue? | Nikkei Ngerem di Atas 50.000, Tanda Mulai Lelah? The Nikkei index is expected to open cautiously on Friday, trading within the 50,000 area after a sharp rally over the past week. Nikkei futures are expected to move only slightly around 50,100, in line with projections for a flat opening for Asian markets as the global rebound begins to lose steam. The previous day, the Nikkei had risen around 1.2% and closed around 50,167, driven by positive sentiment from hopes of a Fed rate cut in December, which has revived investor risk...
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....