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 prices rose as President Donald Trump tightened the blockade on Venezuela, with US forces boarding one tanker and pursuing another within weeks of capturing a vessel. West Texas Intermediate oil traded as high as $58 per barrel on Monday after two weeks of declines. The US Coast Guard boarded the tanker Centuries in the Caribbean on Saturday, carrying about 2 million barrels of Venezuelan crude. It was the first non-sanctioned vessel to be targeted. US forces are also pursuing the Bella 1, which was en route to Venezuela. Washington has been increasing pressure on the government of...
Gold and silver surged to all-time highs, as rising geopolitical tensions and bets on further U.S. interest rate cuts added momentum to their best annual performance in more than four decades. Gold and silver rose 2.1% to surpass their previous record of $4,381 an ounce set in October, while silver gained 3.4%, approaching $70 an ounce. This move extended a remarkable rally that has put both metals on track for their strongest annual performance since 1979. This latest surge came as traders bet the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates twice by 2026, and as U.S. President Donald Trump...
Gold (XAU/USD) surges to fresh record highs on Monday, as escalating geopolitical tensions bolster safe-haven demand. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is trading around $4,413, up about 1.70% on the day, after breaking above the October 21 peak near $4,381. The precious metal is on track for its strongest annual performance since 1979, with prices up nearly 67% year to date. The rally has been fuelled by a dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) stance, broadly weaker US Dollar (USD), sustained central-bank buying, and record inflows into Gold-backed ETFs. Looking ahead, markets continue to anticipate...
The U.S. dollar drifted lower on Monday after logging some gains last week, while threats of government intervention helped the Japanese yen recover mildly from recent losses. Regional markets showed little reaction to the People's Bank of China leaving a benchmark interest rate unchanged as widely expected. Risk appetite was dampened by increased geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, while markets were also on guard over renewed hostilities between Israel and Iran. The dollar found some strength last week as soft inflation data was insufficient in convincing markets that...
The dollar index held at 98.6 on Monday after a modest gain last week, with trading expected to be quiet this week due to the Christmas holiday. Investor attention will mainly be on the second estimate of GDP for the third quarter, set for release on Tuesday, which may offer further insights into the economy's health and the Federal Reserve's interest rate path. Traders currently anticipate that the Fed could deliver two 25bps rate reductions next year, amid signs of easing inflation and a weakening labor market. Meanwhile, Fed Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack on Sunday said that...