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 firmed on Friday and was poised for a weekly rise after U.S. data this week boosted hopes of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, while silver hit a more than 13-year high. Spot gold was up 0.28% at $3,360.60 an ounce. Bullion has gained 2% for the week so far. U.S. gold futures climbed 0.29% to $3,384.87. "The disappointing jobless claims data, indicating potential labour market weakness, has had a more substantial impact on gold prices than the optimism stemming from President Trump's call with President Xi," said Alexander Zumpfe, a precious metals trader at Heraeus Metals...
The dollar rose versus all Group-of-10 currencies as traders trim exposure and await US non-farm payrolls data for fresh insights into the health of the world's largest economy. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rises 0.2% and is down 0.5% on a weekly basis; data later on Friday is likely to show that US hiring moderated further in May, which could weigh on the greenback given higher FX sensitivity to data releases lately. EUR/USD drops 0.3% to 1.1411, erases Thursday's advance; it's up 0.6% this week. The ECB should take a break from lowering...
Silver extended gains to 13-year highs and platinum reached the highest since early 2022, signaling growing investor appetite for precious metals used in key industries. Spot prices for both metals continued to rally on Friday after spikes of more than 4% in the previous session. Gold edged higher at a slower pace. The metals were aided by technical momentum as well as improving fundamentals, with a strong appetite for physical silver in India and resurgent Chinese platinum demand reinforcing the rallies, according to a note by Nicky Shiels, head of metals...
Oil prices remained steadfastly glued to $65 a barrel, as they have been for more than three weeks, with easing trade tensions helping offset concerns about a brewing supply glut later this year. Brent inched lower, but held on to most of its gains from Thursday and was on track for its first weekly increase since mid-May. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, agreed to further trade talks over tariffs and supplies of rare earth minerals. The positive signals come against the backdrop of an oil market that has been increasingly rangebound over...
Gold prices rose on Friday and were headed for a positive week as haven demand was underpinned by uncertainty over U.S. trade policy and caution before a key U.S. payrolls reading. Bullion, along with broader metal prices, also benefited from a softer dollar, which languished near two-year lows amid few positive cues over the U.S. economy. A sharp sell-down on Wall Street, which was triggered by an escalated, public feud between President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, also boosted risk appetite. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $3,368.86 an ounce, while gold futures for August rose 0.5%...