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...
Gold was steady around $2,650 an ounce on Tuesday ahead of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting, with investors eyeing the central bank's 2025 outlook. The Fed is widely expected to deliver a 25bps interest rate cut, but uncertainty remains about the extent of future easing, especially with the prospect of higher inflation under the incoming Trump administration. Recent data showed that U.S. private sector activity grew at a faster pace in December, suggesting the Fed may limit rate cuts next year, which could dampen demand for the precious metal. However, bullion has gained about 29% this...
The Australian dollar held steady around $0.637 on Tuesday, near its lowest level in a year as investors remained cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's upcoming policy decision. The Fed is widely expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday, but may signal fewer cuts than previously indicated for 2025. At home, a private survey showed Australian consumer confidence fell in December, as sentiment turned more pessimistic about the economic outlook. Additionally, traders are awaiting the Australian government's update on its budget outlook, which is expected to show a...
EUR/USD posted a slow advance on Monday, moving to the upper end of a short-term consolidation just above the 1.0500 level, albeit with a lack of real conviction. European data is relatively limited this week, leaving Fiber traders to face a slew of important data on the US side. Markets largely ignored appearances by a number of European Central Bank (ECB) officials to start the new week. December European PMI figures beat expectations, but the Services PMI survey remained in contraction as concerns over a deepening economic slowdown in Europe continue to unsettle investors and...
West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the U.S. crude benchmark, traded around $70.20 on Tuesday (12/17). WTI prices were flat as traders await the Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate decision on Wednesday. However, concerns over sluggish global demand growth in China may cap the black gold's gains for the time being. China's Retail Sales in November came in slower than expected, raising concerns about weaker consumer spending in China. This, in turn, weighed on WTI prices as China is the world's largest oil importer. Data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics on Monday showed that...
Gold prices were steady on Tuesday as traders remained cautious ahead of interest rate decisions by major central banks, including the Federal Reserve. Bullion held steady near $2,650 an ounce, after posting modest gains in the previous session as investors digested mixed U.S. data. Activity at U.S. service providers expanded at the fastest pace since October 2021, while a gauge of New York state factory activity fell the most since May. The Fed makes its final interest rate decision of the year on Wednesday, followed by policy announcements in Japan and the U.K. this week. Swap markets...
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...