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...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) retraces its recent gains from the previous session against the US Dollar (USD) following the People's Bank of China's (PBoC) monetary policy decision on Friday. China's central bank decided to keep its one- and five-year Loan Prime Rates (LPRs) unchanged at 3.10% and 3.60%, respectively, in the fourth quarterly meeting. Australia's Private Sector Credit grew by 0.5% month-over-month in November, aligning with expectations. This followed a 0.6% increase in October, which marked the fastest monthly growth in four months. On an annual basis, Private Sector Credit...
Gold headed for a weekly drop, as traders weighed the interest-rate outlook after the Federal Reserve dialed back rate-cut expectations for next year. Bullion traded near $2,590 an ounce, and is down about 2% for the week. The Fed reduced rates on Wednesday, but investors were more focused on comments from Chair Jerome Powell, who said that while the bank was "on track to continue to cut," officials would first have to see more progress on inflation. Lower rates are typically a positive for gold, as it doesn't pay interest. Traders were also weighing US GDP data on Thursday,...
Oil headed for a weekly decline as a strengthening US dollar pressured prices. West Texas Intermediate fell toward $69 a barrel, and is down more than 2% this week, while Brent crude closed below $73. The dollar has strengthened since the Federal Reserve signaled fewer interest-rate cuts next year on Wednesday, making commodities more expensive for many buyers. Crude is headed for a modest yearly decline, after trading in the narrowest annual range since 2019. Prices have been buffeted by the prospect of tougher sanctions on Iran and Russia, Donald Trump's imminent return to...
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the USD's value against a range of currencies, pulls back from its two-year peak following signals from the Federal Reserve (Fed) about fewer interest rate cuts in the future. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members express concerns about inflation continuing into 2025 and take into account possible "Trump-effect" inflationary policies, such as tariffs and reduced labor supply due to deportations. The DXY stands at 108.00, with that level acting as support. Despite recent advances, traders are taking profits as they consider Chinese economic data...
Gold prices traded around flat on Thursday, erasing earlier gains after U.S. data reinforced market expectations the Federal Reserve will take a cautious approach to policy easing in the year ahead. Spot gold edged up 0.1% at $2,589.43 per ounce and U.S. gold futures fell 1.9% to $2,603.60. Data earlier showed the U.S. economy growing faster than expected in the third quarter, while jobless claims also fell more than anticipated. "With these GDP prints and the jobless claims, it's showing that the data is fairly firm," said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities, adding...
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...