Gold (XAU/USD) trades marginally higher on Friday, oscillating within the familiar range that has defined price action this week, as dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) expectations keep the precious metal broadly supported. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is hovering near $4,222, with investors turning their focus to the delayed US Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation data due later in the day. Markets will closely parse the PCE release as the final checkpoint ahead of next week's Fed interest rate decision. Recent labour indicators have delivered mixed signals but have done little...
Brent crude oil futures hovered around $63.3 per barrel on Friday, holding at a two-week high and remaining on track for a weekly gain, driven by geopolitical risk premium. Traders continued to watch for a possible US move in Venezuela after President Donald Trump signaled imminent action against the oil giant, with Rystad Energy warning that any escalation could threaten the country's 1.1 million bpd of crude output. Prices were also supported by the lack of progress in US talks in Moscow over the Ukraine war, which reduced the near-term prospects for restoring Russian supply, while...
Gold rebounded above $4,210 per ounce on Thursday after an early dip as markets squared positions ahead of the FOMC and digested fresh US labour signals that accelerated expectations of imminent easing. ADP reported a surprise decline of 32,000 private payrolls while Challenger announced 71,321 layoffs in November bringing the year to date total near 1.17 million which reinforced evidence that the labour market is cooling and lifted market confidence in a December 25bp cut. The dollar weakened with the DXY near 98.8 at its lowest since late October which reduced the opportunity cost of...
The USD/CHF pair weakened to the 0.8030 area at the start of Friday's European session. The US dollar was pressured by strong speculation of a Fed rate cut next week and rumors that White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett could replace Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve Chair. The market now prices nearly an 85% chance of a 25 bps rate cut at the December meeting, adding to selling pressure on the greenback. Investors are also awaiting the release of US September PCE inflation data, which could provide important clues to the Fed's future policy direction. In Switzerland, CPI inflation fell...