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...
Gold held a two-day advance as traders focused on tariff threats from President Donald Trump and the outlook for US monetary policy. Bullion traded above $3,330 an ounce, after posting modest gains on Wednesday and Thursday that pared a weekly drop. Rising trade tensions underscored gold's haven appeal after the president proposed a slew of tariffs this week, including moves against Canada and Brazil. In addition, he announced a substantial levy on imports of copper which will come into effect on Aug. 1 alongside other country-specific duties. Elsewhere, investors...
Silver (XAG/USD) trades with a positive bias for the second straight day and tests the top end of a multi-week-old range during the Asian session on Friday. The white metal currently trades around the $37.20 region, up 0.40% for the day. From a technical perspective, the daily Relative Strength Index (RSI, 14) remains above 50, while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram and the signal line are yet to confirm bullish bias. This makes it prudent to wait for some follow-through buying beyond the $37.30-$37.35 region, or the highest since February 2012 touched last month,...
The USD/CHF pair edges higher to near 0.7980 during Asian trading hours on Friday. The Swiss Franc pair trades broadly stable in a risk-averse market mood, followed by fears of an increase in United States (US) 10% tariff blanket. On Thursday, US President Trump said in a telephonic interview with NBC news that he will impose a "15% or 20%" tariff blanked on nations that have failed to secure a trade deal during the 90-day reciprocal tariff pause period. "We're just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay, whether it's 20% or 15%. We'll work that out now," Trump...
Oil prices rose on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would make an announcement regarding Russia, raising the prospect of more sanctions on the major oil producer, while tariff concern and rising OPEC+ output capped gains. Brent crude futures were up 19 cents, or 0.28%, at $68.83 a barrel as of 0408 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude ticked up 24 cents, or 0.36%, to $66.81 a barrel. So far this week, Brent has added 0.8% and WTI has dipped 0.2%. Both contracts lost more than 2% on Thursday as investors worried about the impact of Trump's evolving tariff policy on...
Gold rose on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on Canadian imports and broader tariff threats to other trading partners, but gains were capped by a stronger dollar amid mounting signs of turmoil in global trade landscape. Spot gold rose 0.3% to $3,333.67 per ounce as of 0245 GMT. U.S. gold futures added 0.6% to $3,345.10. On Thursday, Trump said U.S. would impose a 35% tariff on imports from Canada and planned to impose blanket duties of 15% or 20% on most other trade partners. This follows Wednesday's announcement of a 50% tariff on U.S. copper imports and a...