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 edged higher in the Asian session on Tuesday (February 3rd) after plummeting sharply the previous day. Brent crude for April rose 0.2% to US$66.42/barrel, while WTI rose 0.3% to US$61.90/barrel the market is beginning to calm down as geopolitical risk premiums diminish. The main trigger : the US and Iran scheduled to resume nuclear talks this week in Turkey, with meetings leading up to Friday's session in Istanbul between US envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. News of these negotiations has exposed market concerns about the potential for regional...
Precious metals are starting to catch their breath after being rocked by a brutal sell-off in the Asian session. Prices fell sharply and then rebounded slightly, as the market gauged whether this was a natural correction after a frenzied rally, or whether a major rally was truly broken. Spot gold remained under pressure, down around 4% after previously crashing 10% following its sharpest decline in more than a decade on Friday. Silver also hasn't recovered, falling more than 7% after plunging 16% the previous session and posting its biggest intraday drop. The sentiment is clear: from...
Oil prices plummeted sharply as the market began to shed the "war premium" that had been attached throughout January. The trigger: Donald Trump said Washington was communicating/talking with Iran, leading market participants to interpret the situation as a signal of de-escalation, not a move towards open conflict. On Monday, February 2, 2026, Brent fell to around $65.86/barrel and WTI fell to around $61.79/barrel both correcting around 4–5% after previously posting large monthly spikes. The market, which had priced in supply disruptions yesterday, is now rushing to "reset." From a...
Oil prices held steady after surging more than 3% on Thursday, as market participants weighed US President Donald Trump's latest threats against Iran and the risk of escalating conflict in the Middle East. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) held around $66 per barrel, continuing a three-day rally that was also helped by a weaker US dollar. Meanwhile, Brent held above $70, for the first time since July, after a geopolitical risk premium was reinjected into prices. The main trigger came from Trump's warning: if Iran refuses to reach a nuclear deal, the option of a military strike remains on the...
Gold prices fell in the Asian session on Friday (January 30th) after previously experiencing a wild rally and setting a record high. At the time of writing, global gold was trading around $5,280 per ounce. This decline occurred as the market began to take profits after a massive rally in recent days. After rising too quickly, many traders opted to lock in profits, leading to a price correction. Gold's movement this week was indeed full of whipsaws: it briefly approached $5,600, then reversed sharply. This situation usually occurs when speculative positions are already thick and the market...