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's price (XAU/USD) stabilizes and consolidates within a tight range near the $2,900 level at the start of the week. Traders are mulling over comments from United States (US) President Donald Trump after an interview on Fox News over the weekend. When asked about the US economy, President Trump said that the economy is in a 'transition' phase, while markets have already floated the idea that the US economy is in a recession scenario. Meanwhile, Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell issued some remarks on Friday before the Fed's blackout period started. That blackout period...
The dollar weakened on Monday and traded near a four-month low against major currencies as concerns over a global trade war unsettled investors, lifting the safe-haven yen and Swiss franc. The market has been fixated on trade tensions since U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on major trading partners only to delay some of them for a month amid growing signs and concerns of a U.S. economic slowdown. That has caused investors to lose confidence in the U.S. economy, which has outperformed its peers. In currency futures, investors have cut their net long dollar position to $15.3...
Oil prices fell on Monday as concerns about the impact of U.S. import tariffs on global economic growth and fuel demand, as well as rising output from OPEC+ producers, cooled investor appetite for riskier assets. Brent crude was down 6 cents at $70.30 a barrel by 0720 GMT after closing up 90 cents on Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $66.96 a barrel, down 8 cents after closing up 68 cents in the previous session. WTI fell for a seventh straight week, its longest losing streak since November 2023, while Brent fell for a third straight week after U.S. President Donald Trump...
Gold rose on Monday, supported by a weaker dollar and safe-haven inflows amid concerns about an escalating global trade war, while investors awaited further signals to gauge the Federal Reserve's interest rate stance. Spot gold was up 0.1% at $2,914.00 an ounce by 0701 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were up 0.2% at $2,920.10. The dollar index (.DXY), opens a new tab , hovered near a four-month low hit last week, making dollar-priced bullion cheaper for overseas buyers. "There are increasing downside risks to growth, while U.S. foreign policy is also a source of uncertainty, which adds to...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) remains on the front foot against its American counterpart through the Asian session on Monday, with the USD/JPY pair holding just above the lowest level since October touched in the aftermath of weaker US jobs report on Friday. Data released during the Asian session on Monday showed that the base pay in Japan surged to a 32-year high in January, while real cash earnings fell 1.8% on the back of persistent inflation. This comes on top of a growing confidence that bumper wage hikes seen last year will continue this year and backs the case for further interest rate...
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.
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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...