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...
Oil prices edged up on Friday, as investors weighed a tight prompt market against a potential large surplus this year, according to the International Energy Agency, while U.S. tariffs and possible further sanctions on Russia were also in focus. Brent crude futures were up 40 cents, or 0.58%, at $69.04 a barrel as of 1027 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude ticked up 45 cents, or 0.68%, to $67.02 a barrel. At those levels, Brent was headed for a 1.1% gain on the week, while WTI was little changed against last week's close. The IEA on Friday said the global oil market may be tighter...
The US Dollar (USD) is ending the week on a firm note, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret report, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret report. "More tariff threats 35% on Canada from August 1, baseline 15-20% tariffs elsewhere and a suggestion from President Trump that the EU could get its tariff letter shortly boosted the USD and weighed on the major currencies. The CHF is resisting the USD advance though while the JPY is underperforming, along with high beta FX. The USD gains reflect increased risk aversion amid weaker equities...
The Pound Sterling (GBP) faces selling pressure against its peers on Friday after the release of weak United Kingdom (UK) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and factory data for May. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the UK economy declined by 0.1% on month, against expectations of a 0.1% expansion. In April, the UK GDP contracted by 0.3%, extending the decline in economic activity for a second straight month. The poor performance of the industrial sector was one of the reasons behind the economic contraction, data from the ONS showed.. Month-on-month Industrial Production...
The EUR/USD pair is trading lower for the third consecutive day on Friday, with risk appetite subdued after the US President Donald Trump announced that the European Union (EU) will be included in the next batch of tariff letters and raised blanket levies for all other countries to 15% or 20% from the previous 10%. The Euro (EUR) extended its decline against a stronger US Dollar (USD) in a risk-off Asian session and trades at 1.1680 at the time of writing, having hit intra-day lows at 1.1665. The broader picture shows the pair in a corrective pullback from the long-term highs reached on...
The Australian Dollar is showing an exceptional bullish tone on Friday's European morning session. The pair has reversed previous losses and trades practically flat on the day, at a short distance to the year-to-date high, at 0.6595. The pair is on track for its third consecutive positive week, still buoyed by the Reserve Bank of Australia´s decision to maintain its benchmark interest rate at 3.85% earlier this week against a widely expected 25 bps rate. Beyond that, market speculation about a new round of economic stimulus in China, Australia's major trading partner, is providing...
Gold held a two-day advance as traders focused on tariff threats from President Donald Trump and the outlook for US monetary policy. Bullion traded above $3,330 an ounce, after posting modest gains on Wednesday and Thursday that pared a weekly drop. Rising trade tensions underscored gold's haven appeal after the president proposed a slew of tariffs this week, including moves against Canada and Brazil. In addition, he announced a substantial levy on imports of copper which will come into effect on Aug. 1 alongside other country-specific duties. Elsewhere, investors...
Silver (XAG/USD) trades with a positive bias for the second straight day and tests the top end of a multi-week-old range during the Asian session on Friday. The white metal currently trades around the $37.20 region, up 0.40% for the day. From a technical perspective, the daily Relative Strength Index (RSI, 14) remains above 50, while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram and the signal line are yet to confirm bullish bias. This makes it prudent to wait for some follow-through buying beyond the $37.30-$37.35 region, or the highest since February 2012 touched last month,...
The USD/CHF pair edges higher to near 0.7980 during Asian trading hours on Friday. The Swiss Franc pair trades broadly stable in a risk-averse market mood, followed by fears of an increase in United States (US) 10% tariff blanket. On Thursday, US President Trump said in a telephonic interview with NBC news that he will impose a "15% or 20%" tariff blanked on nations that have failed to secure a trade deal during the 90-day reciprocal tariff pause period. "We're just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay, whether it's 20% or 15%. We'll work that out now," Trump...
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....