US stocks rebounded from early losses to close mostly higher on Friday amid hopes that Congress members were making progress toward ending the government shutdown. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones closed 0.3% higher, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq closed near the flatline as AI giants remained under pressure. Senate Republicans rejected Democrats' offer to scale down shutdown demands, but lingering hopes of an incoming agreement improved risk sentiment before the closing bell. The suspension of operations and government data were evidenced by the deteriorating consumer confidence measured by...
Silver prices surged above $33.50 per ounce on Thursday, advancing for a fourth consecutive session as mounting concerns over the US fiscal outlook weighed on the dollar and boosted demand for safe-haven assets. Investor sentiment deteriorated after President Donald Trump's proposed tax bill was projected to add over $3 trillion to the already substantial US debt load, raising fears of financial instability. A weak 20-year Treasury bond auction further fueled expectations that investors are rotating out of US assets, adding momentum to precious metals. In addition to safe-haven buying,...
Gold price (XAU/USD) retreats from a nearly two-week high, around the $3,345-3,346 area touched this Thursday, and trades with a mild positive bias during the early European session. A modest US Dollar (USD) uptick is seen as a key factor behind the commodity's intraday pullback, though any meaningful downside seems elusive. The growing acceptance that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will lower borrowing costs further in 2025 and worries about rising US deficit should cap the USD, which should act as a tailwind for the non-yielding yellow metal. Meanwhile, US fiscal concerns, along with a...
Oil prices were little changed on Thursday as investors stayed cautious, focusing on renewed Iran-U.S. nuclear talks, though unexpected builds in U.S. crude and fuel inventories raised concerns about demand from the world's largest oil consumer. Brent futures inched up 4 cents to $64.95 a barrel by 0456 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 10 cents to $61.67. Both benchmarks fell earlier in the session after U.S. crude and fuel inventories posted surprise stock builds last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday, as crude imports hit a six-week high...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) gains ground against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday, extending its gains for the second successive day. The AUD/USD pair maintains its position following the release of the preliminary S&P Global Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) data. Australia's Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index came in at 51.7 in May versus 51.7 prior. Meanwhile, Services PMI declines to 50.5 in May from the previous reading of 51.0, while the Composite PMI eases to 50.6 in May versus 51.0 prior. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) reduced its Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 25 basis...
Silver price (XAG/USD) rises to near $32.60 per troy ounce during the Asian trading hours on Thursday, gaining ground for the third successive session. Precious metals, including Silver, attract buyers amid rising safe-haven demand over growing fiscal concerns in the United States (US). Moody's downgraded the US credit rating from Aaa to Aa1, following similar downgrades by Fitch Ratings in 2023 and Standard & Poor's in 2011. Moody's also predicted that US federal debt is expected to climb to around 134% of GDP by 2035, up from 98% in 2023, with the budget deficit expected to widen to...