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...
The euro firmed on Monday after Germany's opposition conservatives won the national election as expected, while the dollar extended its decline on mounting worries over the growth outlook of the U.S. economy. Friedrich Merz was set to become Germany's next chancellor after his party emerged victorious in Sunday's election, though he faces complex and lengthy coalition negotiations after the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) surged to a historic second place in a fractured vote. The euro extended gains from early in the session to last trade 0.46% higher at $1.0508. Investors' focus...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) builds on last week's strong gains against its American counterpart and drags the USD/JPY pair below the 149.00 mark, or the lowest level since early December during the Asian session on Monday. Japan's strong Consumer Price Index (CPI) released on Friday comes on top of the upbeat Q4 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth report last week. This, along with expectations that sustained wage gains would spur consumer spending, suggests that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) might hike interest rates more aggressively than initially thought and continue to underpin the JPY. Apart...
The GBP/USD pair kicks off the new week on a positive note and climbs above mid-1.2600s during the Asian session, closer to over a two-month top touched on Friday. Spot prices now look to build on the momentum beyond the 100-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) amid a weaker sentiment surrounding the US Dollar (USD). In fact, the USD Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback against a basket of currencies, drops to its lowest level since December 10 amid doubts about US consumer health, fueled by a disappointing sales forecast from Walmart. Moreover, worries over the impact of US President Donald...
AUD/USD drifts higher to near 0.6370 in Monday's early Asian session, adding 0.25% on the day. China vowed to adopt more targeted measures to stimulate consumer spending, supporting the Aussie. Renewed trade tensions could boost the US dollar and cap the upside for the pair. The AUD/USD pair edges higher to near 0.6370 during the early Asian session on Monday. The Australian Dollar (AUD) attracts some buyers as the Chinese government announced rural revitalisation plans in its annual policy blueprint. According to the State Council's annual rural policy blueprint, China will intensify rural...
Gold traded just shy of last week's all-time high as unexpectedly weak economic data and rising expectations for inflation helped boost haven demand. Bullion was around $2,937 an ounce, after notching its eighth weekly gain — the longest run since 2020. Gains have been supported by a sharp increase in demand for bullion-backed exchange-traded funds, with holdings last week jumping the most since 2022. Reports on Friday showed US business activity slowed, consumer confidence waned and expectations for inflation surged. The Federal Reserve's Chicago President Austan...
Gold touches all-time high of $2,954 amid trade policy uncertainty.Trump expands tariffs to lumber and soft commodities, adding market jitters.US data mixed: Manufacturing PMI improves, but Services PMI contracts.Gold price slides late on Friday, poised to end the week positively, accumulating eight straight weeks of gains that pushed the yellow metal to all-time highs of $2,954. At the time of writing, the XAU/USD trades at $2,940, down 0.15%. The financial markets' narrative has not changed as US President Donald Trump continues with rhetoric related to tariffs. In addition to imposing...
Gold prices fell on Friday as investors booked profits from the previous session's record high, but were set for an eighth straight weekly gain, boosted by strong safe-haven demand amid concerns over U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff plans. Spot gold fell 0.1% to $2,935.75 an ounce. Bullion is up about 1.7% this week after rising to a record $2,954.69 on Thursday. U.S. gold futures fell 0.2% to $2,950.30. "It's just a classic move of new record highs and profit-taking… (but) the fundamentals of gold remain solid," said Alex Ebkarian, chief operating officer at Allegiance Gold. Gold...
Oil prices fell more than $2 a barrel on Friday, posting a weekly decline as investors grappled with fading Middle East risk premiums along with uncertainty about a potential peace deal in Ukraine. Brent crude futures fell $2.05, or 2.68%, to settle at $74.43 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell $2.08, or 2.87%, to settle at $70.40. Brent crude futures fell 0.4% for the week, while U.S. crude futures posted a weekly loss of 0.5%. "There's a risk-off sentiment here," said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital in New York, who also cited relative calm in the Middle...
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....