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...
US President Donald Trump announced new weapons for Ukraine on Monday, threatening sanctions against buyers of Russian exports unless Russia agrees to a peace deal. This represents a major policy shift fueled by frustration over Moscow's ongoing attacks on its neighbor. However, Trump's sanctions threat came with a 50-day grace period, a move welcomed by investors in Russia, where the ruble recovered from earlier losses and the stock market rallied. Meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office, Trump told reporters he was disappointed with Russian President Vladimir...
President Donald Trump warned on Monday that he would impose secondary tariffs of 100% on Russia if a peace deal with Ukraine isn't reached within 50 days. "We are going to be doing very severe tariffs if you don't have a deal in 50 days, perhaps 100%," he said during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. These secondary tariffs would penalize any country trading with Russia, allowing the U.S. to impose steep duties on imports from those nations. While U.S. trade with Russia dropped to $3.5 billion in 2024, indirect trade routes remain significant. Trump's proposed 100% rate is...
President Donald Trump urged the Federal Reserve to slash interest rates to 1%, arguing it would reduce federal borrowing costs and boost economic growth. "We need a 1% rate. The Fed is killing growth," he said on Monday. The federal funds rate currently stands at 5.25–5.50%, where the Fed has held it to control inflation and prevent economic overheating. Dropping rates to 1% would represent the most aggressive monetary easing since the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump's call comes as federal debt servicing costs climb toward historic highs. While a lower rate could ease short-term interest...
President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to impose "secondary tariffs" on Russia's trade partners "at about 100%" if President Vladimir Putin does not agree to a deal to end his invasion of Ukraine in 50 days. "We're very, very unhappy with them, and we're going to be doing very severe tariffs, if you don't have a deal in 50 days, tariffs at about 100%, they call them secondary tariffs," Trump said from the White House while meeting with NATO's secretary general, Mark Rutte. The president said that he is "disappointed" with Putin, because he thought they would have had a deal months...
U.S. stocks edged lower Monday amid fears of an intensifying trade war after President Donald Trump slapped 30% tariffs on imports from Mexico and the European Union, continuing the volatile negotiations with his trading partners. At 09:35 ET (13:35 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 80 points, or 0.2%, the S&P 500 index fell 10 points, or 0.1%, while the NASDAQ Composite slipped 12 points, or 0.1%. Trump imposes 30% tariffs on Mexico, EU Trump over the weekend released more letters outlining trade tariffs on major U.S. trading partners, this time imposing a 30% levy on...
President Donald Trump said the US would send more Patriot air defense batteries to Ukraine, apparently in a shift in stance toward Russia after its efforts to negotiate a ceasefire failed. "I haven't agreed on the numbers yet, but they'll be getting some," the president told reporters on Sunday on his way back to the White House. "We'll be sending Patriots, which they desperately need." The announcement served as the backdrop for what Trump described as his "major statement" against Russia on Monday, as Moscow escalated its airstrikes against Ukraine. The US president has grown...
US President Donald Trump has the authority to fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for good reason if there is evidence to support it, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said Sunday, and that the Fed "should be held fully accountable" for the cost overruns at its Washington headquarters. Hassett told ABC's "This Week" that Trump's decision to try to fire Powell over what the Trump administration calls a $700 million cost overrun "will depend largely on the answers we get to the questions Russ Vought has asked the Fed." Vought, the White House budget director, last week...
The European Union announced on Sunday that it will extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August, aiming to pursue a negotiated settlement. This comes after President Trump on Saturday warned of a 30% tariff on most imports from the EU and Mexico starting August 1, pressuring countries to agree on new trade frameworks within weeks. White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett stressed, "the tariffs are real" unless better deals are made, saying Trump "sent these letters out to folks" to mark a clear stance. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen...
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....