Gold steadied and was set for a moderate weekly loss as investors assessed the outlook for Federal Reserve rate cuts after resilient US jobs and retail data eased concerns about the economy. Bullion traded below $3,340 an ounce, heading for a 0.5% drop on the week. That came after data that showed applications for unemployment benefits fell for a fifth straight week to the lowest level since mid-April, and advancing retail sales in June. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said it's reasonable for policymakers to plan on two interest-rate cuts this year, emphasizing that the central bank...
The Nikkei 225 Index edged up 0.2% to above 37,700, while the Topix Index slipped 0.3% to 2,795 in mixed trading on Monday. Japanese stocks struggled for direction as US President Donald Trump's April 2 deadline for reciprocal tariffs weighed on sentiment. However, Trump hinted on Friday that there could be "flexibility" in his plan, and weekend reports suggested the tariffs may be narrower in scope, potentially sparing certain industries. Domestically, fresh data showed that Japan's private sector activity contracted for the first time in five months, with manufacturing extending its...
Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly lower on Monday (3/24) as U.S. President Donald Trump's April 2 tariff deadline looms. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.37%. South Korea's Kospi fell 0.36%, while the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.05%. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.28% at the open while the Topix gained 0.13%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng futures last traded at 23,657, lower than the HSI's last close of 23,689.72. Over the weekend, Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned of "rising instability" and called on countries to open up markets and businesses. U.S. stock futures were higher, signaling that equities...
The S&P 500 inched higher on Friday, ending four consecutive weeks of declines that were brought on by trade policy turmoil, recession fears and a rollover in megacap tech shares. The S&P 500 added 0.08%, rising into positive territory as the trading session drew to a close. The broad market index ended the day at 5,667.56. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.52% and settled at 17,784.05, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 32.03 points, or 0.08%, to close at 41,985.35. The broad-market S&P 500 posted a 0.5% weekly advance, averting a fifth straight week of losses. The...
European markets closed lower on Friday, led by declines in the travel sector which was down 1.6% after the closure of Heathrow airport. The pan-European Stoxx 600, French CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 all closed around 0.6% lower, while the the German DAX shed 0.5%. The travel and leisure sector lost about 1.6% after London's Heathrow Airport closed on Friday following a fire at a nearby electrical substation. British Airways-owner International Airlines Groupwas trading around 1.9% lower. Basic resources including stocks such as ArcelorMittal and wood pulp processor Stora Enso were...
European markets provisionally closed lower on Friday, led by declines in the travel sector which was down 1.6% after the closure of Heathrow airport. The pan-European Stoxx 600 and French CAC 40 were both about 0.6% lower by 4.40 p.m. London time, while the the German DAX shed 0.5%. London's FTSE 100 was about 0.6% lower. The travel and leisure sector lost about 1.6% after London's Heathrow Airport closed on Friday following a fire at a nearby electrical substation. British Airways-owner International Airlines Group was trading around 1.9% lower. Basic resources — including stocks such...
U.S. stocks plunged on Friday, putting the S&P 500 on track to extend its slide since late February that has been fueled by trade policy turmoil, recession fears and a rollover in megacap technology stocks. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, putting the index on track for its first five-week decline in more than two years. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 302 points, or 0.7%. Traders had been bracing for a potentially volatile session on Friday with so-called "quadruple witching" — when stock options, index futures and single-stock futures expire. Goldman...
The STOXX 50 fell 0.5%, and the STOXX 600 dropped 0.3% on Friday, extending losses from the previous session as concerns over the economic outlook continued to weigh on investor sentiment. The U.S. is set to impose retaliatory tariffs on April 2, while the European Union's retaliatory measures have been delayed until mid-April. Travel and leisure shares were among the worst performers after London's Heathrow Airport was forced to close Friday due to a power outage caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation. Meanwhile, traders were closely watching a vote by Germany's upper house on...
The Hang Seng plunged 530 points, or 2.2%, to close at 23,690 on Friday (3/21), marking its second straight decline amid sharp declines across all sectors. The index fell 1.1% for the week, extending its decline to two weeks, as rising profit-taking in technology stocks and caution ahead of upcoming Chinese corporate earnings weighed on sentiment. Semiconductor Manufacturing dropped 7.1% to a one-month low, while Kuaishou Tech (-5.4%), Alibaba Group (-3.5%), and Tencent (-2.0%) also fell sharply. Consumer, property and financial stocks also fell, as China's newly announced "special action...
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....