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...
China warned the Trump administration on Tuesday against reigniting trade tension by restoring tariffs on its goods next month, and threatened to retaliate against nations that strike deals with the United States to cut China out of supply chains. Washington and Beijing agreed to a trade framework in June that restored a fragile truce, but with many details still unclear, traders and investors on both sides of the Pacific are watching to see if it will unravel or lead to a lasting detente. On Monday, President Donald Trump began notifying trade partners of sharply higher U.S. tariffs from...
The 17th annual BRICS meeting in Rio de Janeiro lasted for two days and officially closed yesterday. Attended by representatives from 11 full member countries, this meeting confirmed BRICS' position as a new geopolitical power that dares to challenge the dominance of Western global institutions and pressure from the United States, especially under the leadership of Donald Trump. This year's meeting is an important moment for BRICS with the presence of Indonesia as a full member, along with Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. BRICS...
President Donald Trump announced the first in a series of letters threatening higher tariffs on major trading partners, including 25% tariffs on goods from Japan and South Korea, and signed an executive order delaying the new duties until Aug. 1. Trump also announced 25% tariffs on Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Tunisia, while South Africa will face 30% tariffs and Laos and Myanmar will face 40% tariffs. Other countries hit with tariffs include Indonesia with 32% tariffs, Bangladesh with 35% tariffs, and Thailand and Cambodia with 36% tariffs. Bosnia received 30% tariffs, while Serbia faced 35%...
President Donald Trump announced 25% tariffs on goods from Japan and South Korea starting Aug. 1, as he moves to impose unilateral tariffs on countries that have not reached trade deals with his administration. The two Asian countries were the first announcements in what the president promised would be a series of trade demands and deals announced Monday. Trump's hasty efforts to overhaul U.S. trade policy in his second term have been a source of persistent uncertainty for markets, central bankers and executives trying to gauge the impact on production, inventories, hiring, inflation and...
The United States will make several trade announcements in the next 48 hours, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday, ahead of a U.S. deadline on Wednesday to finalize trade pacts. "We've had a lot of people change their tune in terms of negotiations. So my mailbox was full last night with a lot of new offers, a lot of new proposals," Bessent said in an interview with CNBC. "So it's going to be a busy couple of days." President Donald Trump said the United States would start delivering tariff letters from 12:00 pm ET (1600 GMT) on Monday. The letters would not necessarily provide...
President Donald Trump said the U.S. will impose an additional 10% tariff on any countries aligning themselves with the "Anti-American policies" of the BRICS group of developing nations, whose leaders kicked off a summit in Brazil on Sunday. With forums such as the G7 and G20 groups of major economies hamstrung by divisions and the disruptive "America First" approach of the U.S. president, the BRICS is presenting itself as a haven for multilateral diplomacy amid violent conflicts and trade wars. In a joint statement from the opening of the BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro released on Sunday...
U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday lashed out against former confidant Elon Musk over the latter's plans to form a third political party in the country, furthering a bitter public feud between the two. In a long, rambling post on Truth.Social, Trump said he was "saddened to watch Elon Musk go completely ‘off the rails'," while criticizing the Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO's plans for a new political party. "He even wants to start a Third Political Party, despite the fact that they have never succeeded in the United States… The one thing Third Parties are good for is the creation of Complete...
Several European Union automakers and capitals are pushing for a deal with President Donald Trump that would allow tariff relief in return for increased investment in the U.S., according to people familiar with the matter. Member countries were briefed on the status of the trade talks on Friday after a series of talks in Washington this week and were told that a technical agreement in principle was close, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The EU has until July 9 to reach a trade deal with Trump before tariffs on nearly all of the bloc's exports to the U.S. jump to 50%....
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....