Gold prices edged higher on Friday, poised for a fifth consecutive weekly gain, following the U.S. Federal Reserve's first rate cut of the year, while investors awaited further signals on the U.S. policy outlook. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $3,650.89 per ounce as of 0817 GMT. Bullion is up 0.2% so far this week. U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.1% to $3,683.40. "The Fed policy outlook remains the primary driving force for bullion bugs, even as the precious metals enjoys tremendous support from central bank purchases and safe haven demand; any dips below $3,600 are bound to be...
Oil prices slipped lower Friday on growing concerns over slowing U.S. demand, but were still on track for weekly gains as the Federal Reserve's rate cut could spur consumption. At 04:50 ET (08:50 GMT), Brent oil futures for November fell 0.5% to $67.11 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped 0.7% to $63.10 a barrel. Both benchmarks were on course for small gains this week as increased hostilities between Russia and Ukraine spurred bets on more supply disruptions. That said, President Trump has called for lower oil prices to pressure Moscow to end the war in Ukraine....
The Australian Dollar (AUD) edges lower against the US Dollar (USD) on Friday, extending its losses for the third successive session. The AUD/USD pair remains subdued as the US Dollar gains support after the release of the United States (US) Weekly Initial Jobless Claims on Thursday. The AUD also struggled after a weaker-than-expected jobs report, which showed that Australia's seasonally adjusted Employment Change arrived at -5.4K in August from 26.5K in July (revised from 24.5K), compared with the consensus forecast of 22K. Meanwhile, the Unemployment Rate steadied at 4.2% in August, as...
The Silver price (XAG/USD) gains ground to around $41.90 during the Asian trading hours on Friday. The white metal finds support from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cuts. As widely expected, the Fed decided to cut its benchmark interest rate at its September meeting on Wednesday, the first time since December, and signaled more reductions are likely this year. Fed Chair Jerome Powell pointed to growing signs of weakness in the labor market to explain why officials decided it was time to cut rates after holding them steady since December amid concerns over tariff-driven inflation. Lower...