The Stoxx 50 and Stoxx 600 edged higher on Friday (August 15), extending their gains for a fourth consecutive session as investors awaited the high-stakes Trump-Putin summit in Alaska, hoping for progress in ending the Ukraine war. Sentiment strengthened despite mixed global data, including weaker factory output and retail sales in China in July. In corporate news, Pandora reported Q2 organic sales rose 8% to DKK 7.08 billion ($1.1 billion), slightly missing estimates, with U.S. sales up 12% but China sales down 15%. The jewelry company will double its planned store closures in China to...
Gold price (XAU/USD) extends its downtrend for the third successive day and drops to over a two-week low, around the $3,221 region during the Asian session on Thursday. Signs of easing trade tensions between the US and China – the world's two largest economies – continue to undermine demand for traditional safe-haven assets and exert downward pressure on the precious metal. Furthermore, the US Dollar (USD) climbs to a two-week top and further contributes to driving flows away from the commodity and the intraday downfall. Meanwhile, the surprise contraction in the US GDP and signs of easing...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is facing headwinds against the US Dollar (USD) as traders adopt caution ahead of the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) data from the United States (US) release due later on Thursday. However, the AUD/USD pair received support after the release of Trade Balance data from Australia. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported a trade surplus of AUD 6.9 billion for March, significantly surpassing expectations of AUD 3.13 billion and the revised February figure of AUD 2.85 billion (down from AUD 2.97 billion). The...
Silver remains under heavy selling pressure for the third straight day on Thursday.Silver (XAG/USD) drifts lower for the third straight day also marking the fourth day of a negative move in the previous five and drops to over a two-week low during the Asian session on Thursday. The white metal, however, shows some resilience below the $32.00 mark, though the technical setup supports prospects for an extension of a one-week-old downtrend.Geopolitical instability or fears of a deep recession can make Silver price escalate due to its safe-haven status, although to a lesser extent than Gold's....
The dollar sloughed off weak U.S. data to steady on Thursday as investors focused on signs the trade war may be cooling down, and looked ahead to U.S. jobs data due on Friday. The yen ticked about 0.2% lower to 143.29 per dollar after the Bank of Japan left interest rates at 0.5%, as expected. The dollar notched its largest monthly fall for 2-1/2 years through April, as President Donald Trump's flip-flopping tariffs hit growth expectations and rattled confidence. But it has come off lows as Trump has suspended much of the hit and hinted at deals, including with China, which has the highest...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) snaps a two-day losing streak against its American counterpart as traders opt to move to the sidelines and wait for the crucial Bank of Japan (BoJ) policy decision this Thursday. Moreover, the updated economic projections and BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda's comments at the post-meeting press conference will be scrutinized for cues about the likely timing of the next interest rate hike. This, in turn, will play a key role in determining the next leg of a directional move for the JPY. Heading into the key central bank event risk, hopes for the potential de-escalation of the...