The Hang Seng Index reversed its downward trend in Hong Kong on Thursday (February 12th), weakening by around 0.9% to around 27,000 after a strong session earlier. This decline halted the momentum of the short term rally, as investors began to reduce risk in large cap stocks. Among the index's contributors, Tencent was a major drag, with its shares falling by around 2.3%, putting pressure on the technology sector, which has recently been a driving force behind market gains. Weakness in large cap companies like this typically quickly impacts sentiment due to their significant weighting in...
Oil steadied after falling by the most in a month as traders fretted that OPEC+ may boost supplies, US data pointed to a slowdown, and an industry estimate showed higher stockpiles at a key storage hub. West Texas Intermediate traded near $63 a barrel, after global benchmark Brent closed below $68. Prices slumped on Wednesday after a report that the OPEC+ alliance will consider a fresh round of production increases at a policy meeting this weekend. Still, Saudi Arabia and its partners have yet to decide how to proceed, according to several delegates. In the US, the world's...
Gold held near an all-time high after a seven-day rally, as weak US data spurred more bets on an interest-rate cut by the Federal Reserve this month and mounting concerns over the central bank's independence underpinned haven demand. Bullion for immediate delivery traded near $3,556 an ounce as markets opened on Thursday, after climbing as much as 1.3% to a new peak of $3,578.51 in the previous session. Ahead of Friday's pivotal US payrolls report, a drop in job openings to the lowest in 10 months saw traders almost fully pricing in a Fed cut this month and projecting at least two...
GBP/USD rose off the mats on Wednesday, clawing its way back above the 1.3400 handle after general market sentiment recovered just enough footing to buoy Cable off of four-week lows below 1.3350. Although broad-market investor sentiment is leaning into the risk-on side as traders clamor for an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve (Fed), a dovish outing from Bank of England (BoE) Governor Andrew Bailey crimped GBP gains. BoE Governor Bailey cautioned that the BoE is still very much in the "discussion" phase of making changes to its Quantitative Easing (QE) programs. The BoE makes one...
The EUR/USD trims some of Tuesday's losses though it remains shy of claiming the 1.1700 figure, despite broad US Dollar weakness across the board. Economic data in the US strengthened the chances that the Federal Reserve could resume its easing cycle at the September meeting. The pair trades at 1.1656, up 0.17%. Euro advances amid Dollar softness, with markets eyeing NFPs despite hawkish Fed pushback on easing An improvement in market mood prompted investors to buy the Euro, following a worse than expected Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report for July. As the number of...
Oil prices fell by more than 2% on Wednesday ahead of a weekend meeting of OPEC+ producers that is expected to consider another increase in production targets in October. Brent crude fell $1.6, or 2.31%, to $67.54 a barrel by 2:11 p.m. EDT (1811 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell $1.68, or 2.56%, to $63.91 a barrel. Eight members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies - known as OPEC+ - will consider further raising oil production at a meeting on Sunday, two sources familiar with the discussions told Reuters, as the group seeks to regain market...