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...
A U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday that most of President Donald Trump's global tariffs were illegal, finding he exceeded his authority when imposing them. A panel of judges in Washington upheld an earlier decision by the Court of International Trade that Trump wrongfully invoked an emergency law to issue the tariffs. Despite the ruling, the tariffs will remain in place for now as the case continues through the legal system. The ruling does not affect Trump's first-term Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum, and autos, nor the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods, as these were imposed...
The University of Michigan consumer sentiment for the US dropped to 58.2 in August of 2025 from the five-month high of 61.7 in the previous month, revised down from the preliminary estimate of 58.6 and well under the initial market expectations of 62. It was the first drop in the sentiment gauge in four months, mainly due to growing inflation concerns and sharply worse buying conditions for durable goods, which fell to their lowest in one year. Expectations on overall business conditions and the outlook on the US labor market also deteriorated, although expectations on personal finances...
Recent economic data suggests the central bank remains on track to cut interest rates at its next meeting in September. The Fed's selected inflation indicator held steady in July, suggesting the central bank remains on track to begin lowering interest rates as soon as its next meeting in September. Consumer prices rose 0.2 percent in July and were up 2.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index released by the Commerce Department on Friday. The annual pace was the same as the previous period. Core prices, which exclude volatile food and...
The US core PCE price index, which excludes volatile and energy prices and is the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of core inflation in the US economy, rose 0.3% from the previous month in July 2025. This figure is the same as in June, in line with market expectations. Compared to the previous year, the index rose 2.9%, the highest in five months. (alg) Source: Trading Economics
Australia's private sector credit rose 0.7% month-on-month in July 2025, after two consecutive 0.6% gains and marking the fastest increase since April. The latest figure beat market expectations of 0.6%, driven by a sharp pickup in business credit (1.4% vs 0.5% in June). Meanwhile, housing credit growth held steady (at 0.5%), while personal credit notably eased (0.4% vs 0.8%). Year-on-year, private credit expanded 7.2%, up from 6.9% in the previous two months and the strongest pace since February 2023. Source : Trading Economics
Tensions between the United States and Venezuela are rising amid a large U.S. naval buildup in the Southern Caribbean and nearby waters, which U.S. officials say aims to address threats from Latin American drug cartels. U.S. President Donald Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration, part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the U.S. southern border. While U.S. Coast Guard and Navy ships regularly operate in the Southern Caribbean, this buildup is significantly larger than usual deployments in the region. A U.S. official, speaking on the...
The European Commission proposed on Thursday removing duties on imported U.S. industrial goods in return for reduced U.S. tariffs on European cars, a key part of the trade agreement the EU and the United States struck last month. The proposals mark the EU's first step in enacting the framework agreement between U.S. President Donald Trump and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on July 27, which saw the EU accept a broad 15% tariff to avoid a damaging trade war. The United States agreed to reduce its tariffs on cars built in the European Union to 15% from 27.5% from the first day of...
Pending home sales in the United States fell by 0.4% from the previous month in July of 2025, extending the 0.8% drop in the previous month to mark the first back-to-back contraction since January. Pending home sales were lower in the Northeast (-0.6%), the Midwest (-4.0%), and the South (-0.1%), which offset the 3.7% jump in the West. According to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, "Even with modest improvements in mortgage rates, housing affordability, and inventory, buyers still remain hesitant. Buying a home is often the most expensive purchase people will make in their lives. This...
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....