Silver prices weakened slightly and are now hovering around US$39–39.40 per ounce, still near their highest levels since 2011. Strengthening bond yields and the US dollar have somewhat curbed the upward trend, but the white metal still posted a year-over-year surge of more than 36%—leading gold's rise of around 31%. The global silver market has recorded a deficit for five consecutive years, and by 2025, a shortfall of approximately 149 million ounces is expected. Mine production has increased slightly, but not enough to offset surging demand. Despite pressure from a strengthening US dollar...
European stocks were little changed on Monday, with the STOXX 50 holding near 5,300 and the STOXX 600 flat at 541, as investors assessed new developments in US trade policy. President Trump is expected to send about a dozen formal tariff warning letters later today, although it was unclear whether EU countries would be included, while saying there would be an additional 10% levy on countries that side with the BRICS bloc. Meanwhile, Trade Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed that a broader package of tariffs, originally set for a July 9 launch, will now be delayed until August 1. Oil-related...
Japanese stocks fell in tense trading after U.S. President Donald Trump said tariff letters would begin to be sent out at noon Monday. Trump also said he would impose an additional 10% tariff on any country that aligns with the "anti-American BRICS policies." The Topix index fell 0.6% to 2,811.72 at the close in Tokyo. The Nikkei fell 0.6% to 39,587.68. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. was the biggest contributor to the Topix decline, down 2.3%. Exporters including electrical equipment and transportation equipment fell, while financials also fell amid economic uncertainty. Japan's...
The Hang Seng Index opened lower by 87 points or 0.36%, settling at 23,828 points; the H-share index fell by 32 points or 0.37%, reaching 8,576 points; while the technology index dropped by 23 points or 0.45%, closing at 5,192 points. Tech stocks exhibited a general softening trend, with Tencent down by 0.3%, Alibaba by 1%, Meituan by 1.1%, Xiaomi Group by 1%, and Kuaishou up by 0.9%. In the financial sector, stocks trended downwards, with HSBC Holdings showing no change; AIA Group declining by 0.7%; Ping An Insurance falling by 0.4%; and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing dropping by...
European equities turned red as investors began taking on board the risk of U.S. tariffs being snapped back on again. The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell by 0.5%. Regionally, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was flat, France's CAC 40 and Germany's DAX ended 0.8% and 0.6% lower, respectively. The British pound also gave up some of the gains from earlier in the session as one Bank of England official called for a more aggressive schedule of interest rate cuts this year. The head of pan-Scandinavian airline SAS told CNBC that European airline consolidation "needed a second phase," after Air France-KLM...
The Hang Seng lost 154 points or 0.6% to close at 23,916 on Friday, marking the second straight session of losses amid broad-based sector declines. The benchmark dropped 1.5% for the week, reversing gains from the prior period as investors grew cautious ahead of U.S. President Trump's July 9 tariff deadline. Adding pressure, China's commerce ministry finalized its EU brandy investigation, imposing tariffs of up to 34.9% for five years starting July 5. Market participants also eyed key Chinese data due next week—including June CPI and PPI amid lingering deflation risks. U.S. markets were...