Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said Thursday that he sees lower risks to inflation as tariffs have driven up price pressures less than expected. "I see on the margin...a reduction of some of the upside risks to inflation" from tariffs, Williams told reporters after speaking at the Economic Club of New York. He noted this reduction comes alongside greater clarity about future economic policy. Williams acknowledged that President Donald Trump's import tax increases are "definitely" affecting price pressures, but added that in terms of tariff pass-throughs to higher...
The U.S. dollar eased slightly on Friday, taking a breather after a strong rally this week as traders awaited the release of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge. At 4:40 AM ET (09:40 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, was trading 0.2% lower at 107.960, after rising to a two-year high earlier this week. Dollar Set for Weekly Gain The dollar index dipped slightly on Friday, but was still headed for a weekly gain of around 1%, supported by a relatively hawkish outlook for U.S. interest rates after the Federal Reserve's final policy...
Oil prices fell on Friday on concerns about demand growth in 2025, especially in the world's biggest crude importer, China, leaving the global oil benchmark on track to end the week down nearly 3%. Brent crude futures were down 33 cents, or 0.45%, at $72.55 a barrel by 0730 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 32 cents, or 0.46%, at $69.06 a barrel. China's state-owned refiner Sinopec (OTC:SHIIY) said in its annual energy outlook released on Thursday that China's crude imports could peak as early as 2025 and the country's oil consumption would peak in 2027 as demand...
Gold prices steadied near a one-month low in Asian trade on Friday and were headed for weekly losses after the U.S. Federal Reserve's forecast of fewer than expected interest rate cuts in 2025 put investors on edge. The Fed lowered interest rates by 25 basis points as expected, but signaled it will adopt a slower rate cut path, with just two more cuts in 2025. Markets were expecting four cuts before the decision. Spot gold was slightly higher at $2,596.82 per ounce, while gold futures expiring in February ticked up 0.1% to $2,610.30 an ounce by 22:35 ET (03:35 GMT). Spot prices were down...
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,...
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...