Gold (XAU/USD) Gold (XAU/USD) regains ground on Friday, edging modestly higher after earlier weakness, even as a resilient US Dollar (USD) caps upside momentum. At the time of writing, XAU/USD trades around $4,345, recovering from a daily low near $4,309. The precious metal briefly surged toward record highs on Thursday after US inflation data undershot expectations. However, gains quickly faded as softer inflation lifted risk appetite across equity markets and pushed Gold back within the range established earlier this week. That said, the downside appears limited, as a dovish Federal...
Japan stocks were lower after the close on Friday, as losses in the Paper & Pulp, Transport and Communication sectors led shares lower. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.84%. The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. (TYO:5706), which rose 3.46% or 195.00 points to trade at 5,826.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd. (TYO:3863) added 2.96% or 33.00 points to end at 1,146.00 and Toho Co., Ltd. (TYO:9602) was up 2.05% or 199.00 points to 9,902.00 in late trade. The worst performers of the session were...
The Hang Seng Index started the day with a decline of 135 points, or 0.53%, settling at 25,531 points. The China Enterprises Index dropped 41 points, or 0.45%, to 9,216 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index fell 29 points, or 0.51%, to 5,713 points. Technology stocks faced downward pressure, with Kuaishou sliding by 1.57%, Alibaba dropping 1%, Tencent falling 0.9%, and Trip.com Group losing 0.39%. Xiaomi Group recorded a marginal decline of 0.09%, while Meituan remained unchanged. Financial stocks showed a mixed trend. AIA Group saw the largest drop, down 1.89%, followed by Ping An...
The Nikkei 225 fell 0.4% to below 41,700, while the Topix Index dropped 0.6% to 2,960 on Friday, as investors booked profits following a sharp rally that pushed both indexes to new highs. Despite the pullback, both benchmarks remain on track to post weekly gains of over 4%, buoyed by optimism around the recently signed US-Japan trade deal. Under the agreement, Japanese exports to the US will face a 15% tariff, well below the 25% threatened by President Trump earlier this month, easing some trade-related uncertainty. On the economic front, Tokyo's core inflation came in slightly below...
Asia-Pacific markets traded lower as investors weigh recent trade developments. Asia markets started the trading day lower. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.24%, while the Topix lost 0.55%. South Korea's Kospi was flat and the small-cap Kosdaq slipped 0.48%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.41%. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was set to start the trading day lower, with the futures contract in Chicago at 41,740 and its counterpart in Osaka at 41,640, against the index's last close at 41,826.34. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 25,505, pointing to a weaker open...
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 closed at new record highs on Thursday (July 24), up 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively. This was supported by Alphabet's strong earnings, which bolstered investor confidence in AI investments. Alphabet shares rose 1% after the company beat second-quarter expectations and raised its 2025 capital spending forecast by $10 billion, lifting shares of other tech giants like Microsoft, Nvidia, and Amazon. Tesla fell 7.9% after CEO Elon Musk warned of challenging quarters ahead. The Dow Jones Industrial Average weakened, dropping 270 points, pressured by an 8% drop in IBM...
European stocks closed higher on Thursday (July 24th) as markets assessed the outlook for trade and monetary policy in the European Union. The STOXX 50 rose 0.3% to 5,359, and the STOXX 600 gained 0.3% to 552. The ECB maintained its benchmark interest rate and noted that disinflation had developed in line with previous estimates. The central bank also noted that further insights into economic developments would be needed before further clarity could be provided on the policy outlook, including a potential trade deal with the US and how the strong euro would move in the coming months....
US stocks were mixed on Thursday as markets assessed developments to domestic trade policy against major tech earnings. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 edged slightly higher, just enough to retest record highs, while the Dow fell over 300 points. Alphabet jumped 4% after the tech giant posted better than expected earnings for the June quarter and said it would increase AI-spending by $10 billion this year. On the other hand, Tesla slumped 7% after missing earnings and revenues estimates, while CEO Musk warned of "rough quarters" ahead due to lower sales in Europe, tariffs, and the end...
The Hang Seng rose 129 points or 0.5% to close at 25,667 on Thursday, extending strength for the fifth session while holding at its highest level since early November 2021. Gains were almost broad-based, led by financial and property stocks, as global equities continued their upward momentum. Optimism mounted that the U.S. may pursue additional trade deals after securing several pacts earlier this week, including with Japan. In China, stocks rose ahead of next week's third round of trade talks with the U.S. in Stockholm, aimed at extending a tariff truce. However, bullish momentum was...
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....