The US Dollar Index (DXY) continued its strengthening for a second day and briefly hovered around 98.20 during the Asian session, driven by hawkish comments from Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid. He emphasized that the Fed must maintain credibility in combating inflation, stating that inflation remains too high, and assessing that current monetary policy is "properly calibrated." However, this encouragement is met with growing expectations of an interest rate cut, coupled with the ongoing US government shutdown. The CME FedWatch tool now projects a 94% chance of a 25 bps cut in...
The Nikkei 225 fell 0.4% to below 34,200 while the broader Topix Index lost 0.2% to 2,523 on Tuesday, extending losses from the previous session and taking cues from a weak lead on Wall Street as political pressure on the Federal Reserve weighed on sentiment. Investor concerns grew after President Donald Trump intensified criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell, raising fears over the central bank's independence. The lack of progress on global trade talks also weighed on market sentiment. Moreover, a strengthening yen, which surged to a seven-month high on Monday, put downward pressure on...
Asia-Pacific markets were subdued Tuesday, tracking Wall Street's sell-off after U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on his pressure campaign on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.Japan's Nikkei 225 as well as the Topix were trading flat. South Korea's Kospi added 0.19% and the small-cap Kosdaq inched 0.16% higher.Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.63%.Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost 0.25%. Mainland China's CSI 300 slipped 0.17% at the open.U.S. stock futures were nearly flat. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 18 points. Both the S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq...
US stock futures were steady on Tuesday after a sharp selloff in the prior session, driven by renewed concerns over the Federal Reserve's independence. On Monday, the Dow fell 0.48%, the S&P 500 dropped 2.36%, and the Nasdaq tumbled 2.55%, with all 11 S&P sectors ending lower—led by consumer discretionary, technology, and energy. Heavy losses hit megacap tech stocks, including Nvidia (-4.5%), Tesla (-5.8%), and Amazon (-3.1%). The decline followed criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell by President Donald Trump, who called him "Mr. Too Late, a major loser," and demanded immediate rate...
US stocks closed sharply lower on Monday (4/21) after President Trump stepped up his criticism of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, raising concerns about the central bank's independence and shaking investor confidence. The selloff was swift and widespread, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq down 2.4% and 2.5%, respectively. The Dow dropped 971 points, while tech giants led the decline—Tesla dropped 6%, Nvidia dropped 4.5% and Amazon dropped 3.1%. All 11 sectors ended in the red, with tech, consumer staples and energy stocks the hardest hit. In a Truth Social post, Trump called Powell "Mr. Too Late,...
Stocks fell again on Monday following yet another negative trading week for Wall Street, as investors receive little signs of progress on global trade talks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 366 points lower, or 0.9%. The S&P 500 shed 1.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.4%. The moves come after each of the three major averages logged a third weekly decline in the last four trading weeks. While the S&P 500 closed out Thursday's session higher, the broad market index still finished the holiday-shortened week 1.5% lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite...
Japan stocks were lower after the close on Monday, as losses in the Paper & Pulp, Transport and Communication sectors led shares lower. At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 declined 1.30%. The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Oji Holdings Corp. (TYO:3861), which rose 6.68% or 41.30 points to trade at 659.60 at the close. Meanwhile, Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd. (TYO:5232) added 3.52% or 133.00 points to end at 3,913.00 and Nichirei Corp. (TYO:2871) was up 3.04% or 58.00 points to 1,969.00 in late trade. The worst performers of the session were Sumitomo...
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Monday as China's central bank held rates at a time when the yuan has come under pressure due to Beijing-Washington trade tensions. Mainland China's CSI 300 rose 0.18% after the People's Bank of China kept its key loan prime rates unchanged at 3.10% for 1-year loan maturities and 3.60% for 5-year loan maturities, in line with the expectations of economists polled by Reuters. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 1.24%, while the broader Topix index declined 1.18%. In South Korea, the Kospi index was flat while the small-cap Kosdaq moved down 0.27% in choppy...
The Nikkei 225 fell 0.7% to around 34,500, while the broader Topix Index declined 0.5% to 2,545 on Monday, ending a two-day winning streak as investors turned cautious ahead of updates on US-Japan trade talks. In the latest development, Japan is reportedly considering increasing soybean and rice imports as a concession to the US. Last week, American negotiators raised concerns over barriers in Japan's automotive and rice markets, while also pressing Tokyo to expand imports of meat, fish products, and potatoes. With no major domestic economic data or earnings releases scheduled for Monday,...
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....