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,...
Silver traded above $38 an ounce on Friday (August 8) and is expected to rise about 3% this week, as expectations of a US interest rate cut and uncertainty over new tariffs boost demand for the precious metal. Higher-than-expected weekly jobless claims, coupled with last week's weaker-than-expected nonfarm payrolls report, have prompted traders to price in the possibility of a Federal Reserve rate cut in September, with another move possible in December. In political developments, President Donald Trump nominated Stephen Miran, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, to replace...
The Australian dollar (AUD) weakened against the US dollar (USD) on Friday (August 8), after three days of gains. The AUD/USD pair weakened as traders priced in a greater than 92% probability of a 25 basis point interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) next week, which would lower the cash rate to 3.60%. The likelihood of an RBA rate cut increased as core inflation eased to 2.7% in June, well below the RBA's 2-3% target, along with rising unemployment and slowing wage growth. Supporting this outlook, Australia's Trade Surplus widened to $5,365 million (month-on-month) in...
The US Dollar Index (DXY), a measure of the value of the US dollar (USD) against a basket of six global currencies, strengthened slightly to around 98.15, ending two consecutive days of declines during Asian trading hours on Friday (August 8th). Federal Reserve Chairman Alberto Musalem is scheduled to speak later on Friday. The DXY strengthened after Federal Reserve (Fed) Governor Christopher Waller reportedly emerged as a leading candidate to replace embattled Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. Waller argued that the US central bank could "view" the inflationary impact of tariffs as transitory....
Oil headed for its biggest weekly drop since June, as traders assessed that US efforts to end the war in Ukraine would not impact supplies, even as Washington imposed sanctions on India for importing Moscow's crude. West Texas Intermediate crude traded below $64 a barrel, down more than 5% this week, while Brent closed near $66. The US benchmark has declined for the past six days, marking its worst decline since 2023. US President Donald Trump, who has set a Friday deadline for Moscow to agree to a ceasefire, has said he is willing to meet with Vladimir Putin, although the Russian leader...
Gold consolidated early in the Asian session. President Trump said on Thursday that he would nominate Stephen Miran, head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, to fill a short-term vacancy on the Fed's Board of Governors. Miran will replace Fed Governor Adriana Kugler, who decided to step down about six months before her term ends. "Miran was the architect of Trump's tariff policy, with the market viewing the appointment as a tilt toward a more dovish monetary policy," ANZ Research analysts said in a note. The prospect of further Fed rate cuts could boost the appeal of the...
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...