Renewed tensions between the United States and Russia have resurfaced following an incident involving an oil tanker, sparking market concerns about potential disruptions to global energy supplies. Washington's move, associated with tightening oversight and enforcement of sanctions on Russian oil shipments, is viewed by Moscow as provocative and could worsen relations between the two countries. Russia views these actions as an attempt by the United States to suppress Russian energy exports and strengthen its dominance in the global oil market. Meanwhile, Washington argues that these measures...
Oil prices edged lower on Wednesday (December 25th), and are on track for their steepest annual decline since 2020 as investors weigh US economic growth and assess the risk of supply disruptions from Venezuela and Russia. Brent crude futures closed down 14 cents, or 0.2%, at $62.24 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 3 cents, or 0.05%, to $58.29. Both contracts have risen about 6% since December 16th, when they plunged to their lowest levels in nearly five years. "What we've seen over the past week is a combination of slight position adjustments in the market...
Gold (XAU/USD) traded under pressure on Wednesday (December 24th) after surging to a new all-time high near $4,526 earlier. Volatility increased amid thin holiday liquidity ahead of Christmas, prompting mild profit-taking at elevated levels. At the time of writing, XAU/USD was trading around $4,470, up nearly 3% this week. Gold bullion's historic rally this year has been remarkable, with prices rising more than 70% since the start of the year, putting gold on track for its strongest annual performance since 1979. This rally has been driven by strong safe-haven demand amid persistent...
The British Pound (GBP) softens against the US Dollar (USD) on Wednesday, with the Greenback finding mild support amid reduced liquidity during the shortened US holiday session. At the time of writing, GBP/USD trades around 1.3500, easing slightly after briefly touching an intraday high near 1.3534, its strongest level since September 19. Markets showed a muted response to the latest weekly US labor market data, which offered mixed signals. Initial Jobless Claims fell to 214K from 224K in the previous week, undershooting the 223K market forecast. Meanwhile, Continuing Jobless Claims climbed...
Silver prices continued their upward trend and rose for the fourth consecutive day, driven by growing expectations of Federal Reserve (Fed) monetary policy easing and the strong appeal of safe-haven assets. On Wednesday, silver (XAG/USD) traded around $72.05, up around 0.70%, after hitting a new record high of $72.71 earlier in the session. This bullish momentum reflects continued investor interest in precious metals, particularly silver, amid changing global monetary policy expectations. The precious metal continues to benefit from speculation that US interest rates will move lower in the...
Gold retreats following the move higher to the $4,525 area, or a fresh all-time peak, though the downside remains limited amid a bullish fundamental backdrop. The US Dollar selling bias remains unabated on the back of dovish Fed expectations, which continues to act as a tailwind for the bullion amid persistent geopolitical risks. Gold rose past $4,500 per ounce on Wednesday to a fresh record, driven by expectations of further Federal Reserve easing and rising geopolitical tensions. US economic growth remained solid in the third quarter, with GDP expanding at a faster pace than in the prior...
Asian stock markets fell in unison on Thursday, following Wall Street's decline. A brief rally in tech stocks led by Nvidia quickly faded, prompting investors to turn away from riskier assets like...
European stock indices closed marginally lower on Wednesday as equities took a breather from their recent strong momentum, while investors continued to assess the outlook for the ECB's policy this...
The upcoming Supreme Court ruling on the legality of President Donald Trump's massive tariffs, which rocked markets in April, is one of the next major tests for US stocks and bonds.
Equity markets...