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 up on Friday, as investors weighed a tight prompt market against a potential large surplus this year, according to the International Energy Agency, while U.S. tariffs and possible further sanctions on Russia were also in focus. Brent crude futures were up 40 cents, or 0.58%, at $69.04 a barrel as of 1027 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude ticked up 45 cents, or 0.68%, to $67.02 a barrel. At those levels, Brent was headed for a 1.1% gain on the week, while WTI was little changed against last week's close. The IEA on Friday said the global oil market may be tighter...
The US Dollar (USD) is ending the week on a firm note, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret report, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret report. "More tariff threats 35% on Canada from August 1, baseline 15-20% tariffs elsewhere and a suggestion from President Trump that the EU could get its tariff letter shortly boosted the USD and weighed on the major currencies. The CHF is resisting the USD advance though while the JPY is underperforming, along with high beta FX. The USD gains reflect increased risk aversion amid weaker equities...
The Pound Sterling (GBP) faces selling pressure against its peers on Friday after the release of weak United Kingdom (UK) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and factory data for May. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the UK economy declined by 0.1% on month, against expectations of a 0.1% expansion. In April, the UK GDP contracted by 0.3%, extending the decline in economic activity for a second straight month. The poor performance of the industrial sector was one of the reasons behind the economic contraction, data from the ONS showed.. Month-on-month Industrial Production...
The EUR/USD pair is trading lower for the third consecutive day on Friday, with risk appetite subdued after the US President Donald Trump announced that the European Union (EU) will be included in the next batch of tariff letters and raised blanket levies for all other countries to 15% or 20% from the previous 10%. The Euro (EUR) extended its decline against a stronger US Dollar (USD) in a risk-off Asian session and trades at 1.1680 at the time of writing, having hit intra-day lows at 1.1665. The broader picture shows the pair in a corrective pullback from the long-term highs reached on...
The Australian Dollar is showing an exceptional bullish tone on Friday's European morning session. The pair has reversed previous losses and trades practically flat on the day, at a short distance to the year-to-date high, at 0.6595. The pair is on track for its third consecutive positive week, still buoyed by the Reserve Bank of Australia´s decision to maintain its benchmark interest rate at 3.85% earlier this week against a widely expected 25 bps rate. Beyond that, market speculation about a new round of economic stimulus in China, Australia's major trading partner, is providing...