The Federal Reserve is likely to start a series of interest-rate cuts next week and keep going through the end of the year, traders bet on Wednesday after tamer-than-expected producer price inflation last month calmed worries that price pressures would hold the central bank back from policy easing. Traders stuck to bets the Fed will start with a quarter-point reduction at its meeting next week, and continue with same-sized cuts through year-end, based on pricing of futures contracts that settle to the Fed's policy rate. The producer price index increased 2.6% in August from a year earlier,...
The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Monday as markets look ahead to inflation and retail sales data for July this week. There are no US data scheduled for release Monday, but surprise appearances by Federal Reserve officials on television networks are possible. Consumer price index data for July will be the main release Tuesday, along with the National Federation of Independent Business' small business sentiment reading for July, weekly Redbook same-store sales and the Treasury's budget report for July. Weekly mortgage application and crude oil stock inventories...
Oil prices were steady on Monday, after falling more than 4% last week, as investors looked ahead to talks between the U.S. and Russia later this week on the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures were up 5 cents to $66.64 a barrel at 1003 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 1 cent to $63.87. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15 in Alaska to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. The talks follow increased U.S. pressure on Russia, raising the prospect that penalties on Moscow could be...
The Pound Sterling (GBP) extends its winning streak for the fifth trading day against the US Dollar (USD) at the start of the week. The GBP/USD pair jumps to near 1.3480 due to the continued underperformance from the US Dollar, which is dragged by increasing expectations of interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed). At the time of writing, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback's value against six major currencies, trades 0.17% lower to near 98.00. The US Dollar underperforms as traders have become increasingly confident that the Fed will reduce interest rates in the...
The U.S. dollar was little changed on Monday before Tuesday's deadline for Washington and Beijing to strike a tariff deal and a key U.S. inflation report that could help determine whether the Federal Reserve lowers borrowing costs next month. The dollar index was down less than 0.1% to 98.164 after last week's 0.4% fall. Against the yen, the U.S. currency traded at 147.39, down 0.2%. Japanese markets were closed on Monday for the Mountain Day holiday. The euro was up less than 0.1% at $1.1652, while sterling was flat at $1.3462. The dollar remains on the back foot as investors recently...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) seesaws between tepid gains/minor losses against its American counterpart through the early European session on Monday amid mixed fundamental cues. The prevalent risk-on environment, along with the uncertainty over the likely timing of the next interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan (BoJ), is seen undermining the safe-haven JPY. However, the divergent BoJ-Federal Reserve (Fed) policy expectations hold back the JPY bears from placing aggressive bets. Investors seem convinced that the BoJ will raise interest rates by the end of this year. In contrast, the US central...
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...