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...
European stocks rose Tuesday, with investors digesting the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington. The DAX index in Germany gained 0.5%, the CAC 40 in France rose 1.2% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. increased 0.4%. Rising peace optimism Sentiment received a boost Tuesday after a meeting between the presidents of the U.S. and Ukraine ended relatively positively, with both sides hopeful of the future. Trump said that the U.S. would help guarantee Ukraine's security, but did not specify the terms of any guarantees. He also raised the...
US stocks traded mixed within a narrow range on Tuesday as the market assessed earnings results and continued to gauge the outlook for monetary policy this year. The S&P 500 remained near the flatline, not far from last week's record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 100 points. The Nasdaq 100 edged down 0.3%. Home Depot jumped 3% to support the Dow Jones Industrial Average despite missing second-quarter earnings estimates, as the large home improvement retailer kept its annual forecast steady. The store is the first of several retail giants to report results this week,...
The Hang Seng Index fell 54 points, or 0.2%, to close at 25,123 on Tuesday (August 19), marking its fourth session of declines and its lowest close in nearly three weeks. Investors remained cautious ahead of the PBoC's monthly benchmark lending rate review due on Wednesday. Weakening US index futures also added to risk-off sentiment ahead of the Jackson Hole meeting later this week. Meanwhile, the latest data showed China's youth unemployment rate jumped to 17.8% in July from 14.5% in June, the highest since August 2024. The broader unemployment rate also rose to a four-month high of...
European stocks edged higher on Tuesday as global markets reacted positively to the outcome of talks between U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.1% higher by 8:11 a.m. in London (3:11 a.m. ET), with most sectors in positive territory. Defense stocks were among the worst performers in the index during early trade, as investors digested the news of talks in Washington. The Stoxx Europe Aerospace and Defense index was last seen trading 0.4% lower. German tank parts...
Japanese stocks fell on Tuesday as investors awaited a key central bankers' meeting and assessed positive diplomatic signals on a possible end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Nikkei 225 dipped 0.38%, or 168.02 points, to end at 43,546.29. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said security guarantees could be finalized within 10 days following talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders. The comments came after Trump's meeting with NATO partners and his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to arrange further talks. Investors are also focused on the Fed's...
The Hang Seng Index opened 64 points higher, or 0.25 per cent, at 25,241 points yesterday. Meanwhile, the China Enterprises Index rose 20 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 9,054 points, and the Technology Index gained 13 points, or 0.23 per cent, to close at 5,592 points. Technology stocks showed mixed results: Tencent rose 0.1 per cent, Alibaba slipped 0.1 per cent, and Meituan edged up by 0.1 per cent. Xiaomi Group climbed 0.8 per cent ahead of its earnings report, JD.com rose 0.2 per cent, while Kuaishou remained unchanged. Financial stocks remained steady, with HSBC Holdings climbing 0.5...
Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell Tuesday as investors await the outcome of the talks between U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House. Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark ticked up 0.1%, after closing at a record high in its previous session, while the broader Topix index was flat. In South Korea, the Kospi index fell 0.2% in early trade, while the small-cap Kosdaq declined by 0.33%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.61% at the open. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 25,230, pointing to a stronger open...
Japanese stocks open on a firm note as investors are upbeat about domestic earnings expectations and solid US consumer data, with rapidly easing concerns about tariffs also aiding sentiment. The Topix Index rose 0.1% to 3,124.34 as of 9:06 a.m. Tokyo time The Nikkei advanced 0.3% to 43,844.57 Toyota Motor Corp. contributed the most to the Topix Index gain, rising 1.2%. Out of 1,679 stocks in the index, 793 rose and 743 fell, while 143 were unchanged. Hideyuki Ishiguro, chief strategist at Nomura Asset Management, said earnings estimates for the next 12 months in both...
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....