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...
The dollar's decline this year risks accelerating, with June providing a number of potentially negative catalysts. The 2025 decline, though steeper by more than 7% — so far orderly, but the scale and scope of the dollar's selling is likely to increase on any dovish Fed pricing later in the year. The dollar fell on Monday — down against all G10 currencies — after just posting its fifth straight monthly decline in its longest losing streak since 2020. Traders began the month grappling with deteriorating diplomatic relations between the U.S. and China over trade and weaker-than-expected...
Gold rose more than 2% on Monday to its highest in more than three weeks, as a weaker dollar and a combination of geopolitical risks and economic uncertainty fueled investor demand for safe-haven assets. Spot gold was up 2.7% at $3,377.29 an ounce, as of 10:19 a.m. ET (1419 GMT), after hitting its highest since May 8 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures were up 2.6% at $3,402.70. The dollar (.DXY), fell 0.7% against a basket of other currencies, making bullion cheaper for holders of other currencies. Stocks also fell as U.S.-China trade tensions escalated and investors braced for a...
The U.S. dollar fell against other major currencies on Monday, giving up some of the previous week's gains, as markets weighed the outlook for President Donald Trump's tariff policy and its potential to hurt growth and unleash inflation. The U.S. currency started the week on the back foot after Trump said on Friday that he planned to double duties on imported steel and aluminum to 50% from Wednesday, and as Beijing hit back against accusations it violated an agreement on critical minerals shipments. China's Commerce Ministry said on Monday the charges were "groundless," and promised to...
The crude oil market devotes considerable energy to what OPEC+ says, but perhaps a little less to what it actually does when it comes to the supply of the world's most important commodity. The eight members of the wider group that had implemented voluntary production cuts met at the weekend and decided to raise output by 411,000 barrels per day (bpd) in July, the third straight month of the same increase. More than half of the lift in output will be split among the big three of the OPEC+ group, namely Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. However, there are two questions that...
Gold prices rose to a more than a one-week high on Monday, driven by safe-haven demand as renewed U.S. tariff threats from President Donald Trump and escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine heightened global trade and geopolitical fears. Spot gold was up 2% at $3,353.29 an ounce, as of 1128 GMT, after hitting its highest level since May 23, earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures rose 1.9% to $3,378.40. The dollar (.DXY), opens new tab was down 0.6% against its rivals, after Trump said on Friday that he plans to double duties on imported steel and aluminum to 50%, and as Beijing...