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 sliding yen boosted the dollar on Thursday as the Bank of Japan lowered growth forecasts in light of U.S. tariffs and left rates on hold, while investors watched for signs of the trade war cooling and awaited U.S. labour market data. The yen dropped by as much as 1.1% to 144.74 per dollar, its weakest since April 10. It was last at 144.33 per dollar. The central bank's hold on interest rates was unanimous and anticipated, but investors saw the downgraded outlook as reducing the likelihood of future hikes. "It was no surprise that they revised both the growth and inflation down but both...
Silver prices fell over 1% toward $32 per ounce on Thursday, marking a third consecutive session of decline, as easing global trade tensions dampened demand for safe-haven assets. Sentiment shifted after US President Donald Trump signaled potential trade agreements with India, Japan, and South Korea, and voiced optimism about a deal with China. At the same time, silver's industrial demand outlook came under pressure amid weaker economic data from major economies. The US economy unexpectedly contracted by 0.3% on an annualized basis in the first quarter—its first negative growth in three...
Oil prices steadied on Thursday a day after a steep decline triggered by signs that Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest crude exporter, may raise output and data showing a contraction in the economy of the U.S., the world's biggest oil consumer. Brent crude futures fell 6 cents, or 0.1%, to $61 a barrel as at 0730 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 12 cents or 0.2%, to $58.09. WTI closed at its lowest since March 2021 on Wednesday. "In the near term, the path of least resistance remains tilted to the downside," said Sugandha Sachdeva, founder of SS WealthStreet, a New...
Gold eased to hit its lowest level in two weeks on Thursday as the dollar's strength and easing trade tensions dulled the metal's safe-haven allure, while investors awaited the U.S. non-farm payrolls report. Spot gold was down 1.6% at $3,235.55 an ounce as of 0629 GMT, after hitting its lowest level since mid-April. The dollar (.DXY), opens new tab rose 0.4% against its peers, making bullion more expensive for overseas buyers. U.S. President Donald Trump said he has "potential" trade deals with India, South Korea and Japan as he sought to convert his tariff policy into trade...
Gold price (XAU/USD) extends its downtrend for the third successive day and drops to over a two-week low, around the $3,221 region during the Asian session on Thursday. Signs of easing trade tensions between the US and China – the world's two largest economies – continue to undermine demand for traditional safe-haven assets and exert downward pressure on the precious metal. Furthermore, the US Dollar (USD) climbs to a two-week top and further contributes to driving flows away from the commodity and the intraday downfall. Meanwhile, the surprise contraction in the US GDP and signs of easing...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is facing headwinds against the US Dollar (USD) as traders adopt caution ahead of the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) data from the United States (US) release due later on Thursday. However, the AUD/USD pair received support after the release of Trade Balance data from Australia. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported a trade surplus of AUD 6.9 billion for March, significantly surpassing expectations of AUD 3.13 billion and the revised February figure of AUD 2.85 billion (down from AUD 2.97 billion). The...
Silver remains under heavy selling pressure for the third straight day on Thursday.Silver (XAG/USD) drifts lower for the third straight day also marking the fourth day of a negative move in the previous five and drops to over a two-week low during the Asian session on Thursday. The white metal, however, shows some resilience below the $32.00 mark, though the technical setup supports prospects for an extension of a one-week-old downtrend.Geopolitical instability or fears of a deep recession can make Silver price escalate due to its safe-haven status, although to a lesser extent than Gold's....
The dollar sloughed off weak U.S. data to steady on Thursday as investors focused on signs the trade war may be cooling down, and looked ahead to U.S. jobs data due on Friday. The yen ticked about 0.2% lower to 143.29 per dollar after the Bank of Japan left interest rates at 0.5%, as expected. The dollar notched its largest monthly fall for 2-1/2 years through April, as President Donald Trump's flip-flopping tariffs hit growth expectations and rattled confidence. But it has come off lows as Trump has suspended much of the hit and hinted at deals, including with China, which has the highest...
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....