After a nine-month pause, the US Federal Reserve is expected to resume its cycle of interest rate cuts this week. The big question is how far will it go? US President Trump has already made it clear that he wants to see cuts to a key interest rate of around 1% (from the current 4.25-4.50%), and probably as quickly as possible. Given the risk of stagflation in the wake of US tariffs, such a sharp easing of monetary policy would be disastrous for the US Dollar (USD), Commerzbank's Head of FX and Commodity Research Thu Lan Nguyen notes. Trump wants the Fed to help the Treasury finance the...
he dollar index extended losses to 97.8 on Monday, back again to 2022-lows, as traders dialed back some risk-off positioning while closely watching developments in the Israel-Iran conflict. Sentiment further improved following reports that Iran is signaling a willingness to resume negotiations over its nuclear program. The Wall Street Journal reported that Tehran has informed Arab officials that it is open to resuming negotiations, provided the United States refrains from participating in the attacks, citing officials. The news come as Israel and Iran continued to exchange attacks for a...
Gold is trading lower on Monday as a combination of profit-taking and geopolitical risks continues to drive prices. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is trading around $3,390, as it retreats below the former $3,400 psychological support level. The metal's safe-haven appeal, coupled with swings in US 10-year Treasury yields, remains the principal driver of prices; however, profit-taking at elevated levels has capped further gains. Geopolitical tensions continue to underpin demand: the conflict between Israel and Iran, now entering its fourth day, shows no sign of easing, and calls for...
Gold (XAU/USD) is experiencing a mild pullback during the European session after reaching a two-month high of $3,452.72 in the Asian session on Monday. Geopolitical tensions, especially the conflict between Israel and Iran, have contributed to supporting Gold prices. However, after peaking, XAU/USD pulled back, trading above $3,400 at the time of writing. The main drivers of Gold prices so far have been their safe-haven appeal, movements in US 10-year Treasury yields, and profit-taking at higher levels. Tensions between Israel and Iran have escalated over the weekend and are entering the...
The dollar held ground in choppy trading on Monday, as investors monitored the fighting between Israel and Iran for signs that it could escalate into a broader regional conflict and braced for a week packed with central bank meetings. As both Iran and Israel showed no signs of backing off from their attacks, market participants mulled the prospect that Tehran might seek to choke off the Strait of Hormuz - the world's most important gateway for oil shipping. This could raise broader economic risks from disruptions in the energy-rich Middle East. The dollar, which until recently had always...
Oil prices edged down on Monday, paring back Friday's 7% surge, as renewed military strikes by Israel and Iran over the weekend left oil production and export facilities unaffected. Brent futures were down 96 cents, or 1.3%, to $73.27 a barrel by 1157 GMT, while U.S. WTI futures were off $1.05 or 1.4%, to $71.93. Both benchmarks jumped more than $4 a barrel in Asian trading before giving back gains. They settled 7% higher on Friday, having surged more than 13% during the session to their highest levels since January. "It all boils down to how the conflict escalates around energy flows,"...
President Donald Trump said he would fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors if she does not resign her post over mortgage-fraud accusations from a top...
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...