Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said on Thursday he continues to believe the U.S. central bank should cut interest rates at the end of this month amid mounting risks to the economy and the strong likelihood that tariff-induced inflation will not drive a persistent rise in price pressures. "It makes sense to cut the FOMC's policy rate by 25 basis points two weeks from now," Waller told a gathering of the Money Marketeers of New York University. "I see the hard and soft data on economic activity and the labor market as consistent: The economy is still growing, but its momentum...
Hong Kong stocks jumped 400 points, or 1.7%, to 24,091 in early trading on Tuesday, rising for a third straight session and hitting a one-week high. Sentiment was boosted by a rally in U.S. futures and easing geopolitical tensions after President Trump announced a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Iran, starting around midnight Monday, Washington time. The market also welcomed comments from Fed Vice Chair Michelle Bowman, who hinted at the possibility of an interest rate cut as early as July. In China, the top legislature, known as the NPC Standing Committee, will meet this week to...
Asia-Pacific markets rose on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Iran and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire. "It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total Ceasefire… for 12 hours, at which point the War will be deemed OVER!" Trump wrote on Truth Social. However, neither Iran nor Israel has publicly confirmed that they have accepted Trump's ceasefire timetable. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.59%, while the broader Topix index gained 1.32%. South Korea's Kospi jumped 2.09% and the small-cap Kosdaq index gained...
The Nikkei 225 jumped 1.3% to above 38,800 while the broader Topix index rose 1.2% to 2,794 on Tuesday, ending a three-day losing streak after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire, calling the conflict the "12-Day War." Investors also appeared to shrug off Tehran's retaliatory attack on a U.S. military base in Qatar that caused no casualties. Also, Iran avoided targeting the critical Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns about a wider disruption to global oil supplies. At home, investors continued to assess the Bank of Japan's monetary policy...
The European stock markets closed lower in Monday trading as The Stoxx Europe 600 lost 0.19%, Germany's DAX was down 0.33%, the FTSE 100 was off 0.14%, France's CAC 40 slid 0.67%, and the Swiss Market Index declined 0.10%. The seasonally-adjusted HCOB Flash Composite PMI Output Index, which gauges the health of European manufacturing remained unchanged at 50.2 in June from May and registered above the 50 threshold indicating expansion for a sixth straight month. However, the expansion of business activity continues to be marginal. In the UK, the S&P Global UK Consumer Sentiment Index...
US stocks were near the flatline on Monday as downplayed concerns that the US strike on Iran may have on energy markets and future conflict in the Middle East. The S&P 500, the Dow Jones, and the Nasdaq 100 were all close to the flatline. US forces struck Iranian nuclear infrastructure over the weekend after US President Trump had dismissed the possibility of an imminent attack. While the Iranian vowed aggressive retaliation and its parliament backed the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, oil tankers so far continued to sail through the region and crude oil prices pared their increase,...
According to a statement by the Federal Reserve (Fed), Fed Chair Jerome Powell met with United States (US) President Donald Trump on Thursday, where the head of the Fed reiterated that the Fed's...
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintained its cash rate at 4.1% during its April meeting, holding borrowing costs unchanged after slashing 25 bps in the February meeting, aligning with market...