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...
Silver (XAG/USD) held firm around $47.80/oz during the Asian session on Thursday (October 2), continuing its rally after hitting a new record on Wednesday. The US government shutdown following the Senate's failure to pass a short-term funding bill sparked demand for safe-haven assets, increasing the appeal of the white metal amidst the uncertainty. On the policy front, US Vice President JD Vance warned of potential layoffs if the shutdown continues, which could weaken the labor market and raise expectations of a Fed rate cut. This sentiment was further strengthened after ADP reported that...
The Japanese yen strengthened for the fifth straight day on Thursday, remaining near the two-week high reached the previous day as the US dollar weakened. Markets are increasingly accepting that the Bank of Japan will continue its policy normalization, contrary to speculation that the Fed could cut interest rates two more times this year. This divergence in policy direction has narrowed the US-Japan interest rate differential, providing additional support for the lower-yielding JPY. Meanwhile, the market response to the US government shutdown has been subdued so far, with expectations of a...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) maintains its position against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday, following the release of Trade Balance data. Additionally, the AUD/USD pair moves little as traders adopt caution after the United States (US) government shut down. Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Thursday that Australia's Trade Surplus narrowed to 1,825 million month-over-month (MoM) in August, against 6,500 million expected and 7,310 million in the previous reading. Meanwhile, Exports fell by 7.8% MoM in August from 3.3% seen a month earlier as Gold exports declined after a run of...
Gold edges lower in the early morning Asian session on a likely technical correction. Front-month Comex gold futures closed 0.7% higher at $3,867.50/oz on Wednesday, a fresh high. Any declines in gold may be limited by the ADP report released overnight that showed an unexpected fall in U.S. private-sector jobs in September. A series of soft data would bring Fed rate-cut expectations closer, supporting gold's move toward higher psychological levels, says XS.com's Linh Tran in an email. "Gold will continue to grind higher but with intermittent swings around key psychological levels, given...
Oil held a run of losses after US crude inventories expanded for the first time in three weeks, ahead of an OPEC+ meeting on the weekend that will likely lead to the return of more idled supply. West Texas Intermediate traded below $62 after tumbling 6% over the previous three sessions. Brent closed near $65 on Wednesday. US crude stockpiles rose by 1.79 million barrels last week, while gasoline inventories swelled the most since late June, according to Energy Information Administration data. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies are expected...
AUD/USD extends its bull run for the fourth day in a row on Wednesday, reclaiming the area above the key 0.6600 barrier, always amid the persistent offered stance in the US Dollar as investors gauge the impact of the recently announced US federal government shutdown. The Australian Dollar (AUD) halted its strong recovery on Wednesday, prompting AUD/USD to keep its trade around the 0.6600 region following a brief knee-jerk below that key level. The pair's U-turn came from a vacillating US Dollar (USD), which managed to set aside the initial bearish tone despite mixed US data releases and...
The U.S. dollar slid to two-week lows against the yen on Wednesday after data showed private-sector jobs in the world's largest economy contracted last month, boosting expectations the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates two more times this year. Against the euro and sterling, the dollar fell to one-week troughs in the wake of the jobs data. Data showed that U.S. private employment shrank by 32,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised 3,000 decline in August, according to the ADP National Employment Report on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private employment...
EUR/USD is steady late during the North American session as investors digest a soft jobs report and shrugs off the shutdown of the US government. The lack of an agreement between the White House and Democrats would prolong the shutdown and delay US economic data releases. The pair trades at 1.1720 unchanged. US ADP National Employment Change in September was dismal and highlighted the weakness of the labor market. Business activity in the manufacturing sector in the US, improved but contracted for the seventh straight month. Regarding political turmoil in the US, Vice-President JD Bance...
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....