Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, plans to sign a USD 8 billion engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with US engineering firm KBR Inc. to build 17 modular refineries, according to two sources familiar with the matter and an official presentation by the Economic Ministry, as reported by Reuters. The contract is part of a trade pact reached last week between Indonesia and the US, which resulted in a reduction of proposed US tariffs, from 32% down to 19%. Indonesia's Economic Minister, Airlangga Hartarto, who served as chief negotiator for the deal, revealed...
Gold (XAU/USD) rose more than 1% on Monday (05/05) as traders turned to safe assets after an eventful weekend in the geopolitical sphere. Houthi attacks on Ben Gurion airport this weekend and Israel's pledge to fulfill its promises while preparing for a broad ground offensive in Gaza have again raised risks in the region. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said that military action could be an option for the US to take control of Greenland. Gold's appeal increased as traders prepared for the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision on May 7. Over the weekend, Trump again expressed his...
EUR/USD is trading slightly higher near 1.1325 during European trading hours on Monday (05/05), strengthening after hitting a three-week low of 1.1265 late last week. The major currency pair strengthened as the US dollar (USD) amid ongoing uncertainty over the United States (US)-China trade relations and as investors remained cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve (Fed) monetary policy announcement on Wednesday. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, fell near 99.80 but traded within Friday's range. Over the weekend, US President...
Gold (XAU/USD) prices maintained its bid tone heading into the European session, albeit lacked any follow-through as traders opted to wait for more cues on the Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate hike path before placing any directional bets. Hence, the focus would remain on the outcome of the two-day FOMC policy meeting on Wednesday, which would play a key role in influencing the near-term US Dollar (USD) price dynamics and provide some meaningful impetus to the non-yielding yellow metal. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump's erratic trade policies kept investors on their toes....
Oil prices plunged more than $2 a barrel in Asian trade on Monday as OPEC+ prepared to further accelerate oil output increases, stoking concerns about more supply coming into a market clouded by an uncertain demand outlook. Brent crude futures fell $2.21, or 3.61%, to $59.08 a barrel by 0653 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $56.00 a barrel, down $2.29, or 3.93%. Both contracts touched their lowest levels since April 9 at the open on Monday after OPEC+ agreed to accelerate oil output increases for a second straight month, increasing output in June by 411,000 barrels per...
The USD/CHF pair struggled to capitalize on Friday's US jobs data-led uptick from the 0.8200 level and attracted fresh sellers at the start of a new week. However, the spot prices remained confined within a familiar range for the past two weeks and are currently trading around the 0.8235-0.8230 region, down nearly 0.50% for the day. The better-than-expected release of the closely watched US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report forced investors to push back their expectations for a 25 basis points (bps) interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve (Fed) to July from June. However, the US Dollar (USD)...
China's official NBS Manufacturing PMI increased to 49.7 in June 2025 from May's 49.5, matching market expectations while marking the third consecutive month of contraction in factory activity.
It...
Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, plans to sign a USD 8 billion engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with US engineering firm KBR Inc. to build 17 modular...