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 index fell to around 99.5 on Thursday, marking its fourth straight daily decline, as fiscal concerns weighed on sentiment. Investors are increasingly uneasy over Trump's proposed budget, which includes sweeping tax cuts projected to add between $3 trillion and $5 trillion to the national debt. However, the legislation hit a political snag as several blue-state Republicans warned they would withhold support unless the bill includes a larger deduction for state and local taxes. Further pressure on the dollar came from a lackluster 20-year bond auction, which signaled weakening...
Gold rose toward $3,340 per ounce on Thursday, gaining for a fourth straight session to reach a near two-week high, as investors sought safe-haven assets amid growing concerns over the US fiscal outlook. Risk sentiment weakened following the release of a proposed US federal budget that could further widen the already large deficit, compounded by Moody's recent downgrade of the US credit rating due to rising debt levels and the Fed's cautious outlook on the economy. Geopolitical tensions further amplified gold's appeal, with ongoing unrest in the Middle East and President Trump appearing to...
EUR/USD extended its rally for the third straight day on Wednesday (5/21) as the US Dollar (USD) continued to face headwinds following Friday's US credit rating downgrade. This, coupled with the vote for Trump's "One Big, Beautiful Bill," weighed on traders, as it would increase the national debt, which has been deemed unsustainable by Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell. The single currency continued to capitalize on broad US Dollar weakness. Moody's revision to downgrade the US government debt rating from AAA to Aa1 on Friday fueled investor concerns over the weekend as the Trump...
Gold prices rose for a third straight session on Wednesday, hitting a one-week high, helped by a weaker dollar and safe-haven demand amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Spot gold rose 0.7% to $3,312.77 an ounce, as of 1:55 p.m. ET (1755 GMT). U.S. gold futures settled 0.9% higher at $3,313.50. The U.S. dollar (.DXY), opens a new tab , fell 0.6% against a basket of other currencies, making gold cheaper for holders of foreign currencies. Wall Street's main indexes fell and Treasury yields rose, as investors eyed a key debate over President Donald Trump's tax cut bill that has stoked...
Oil prices fell on Wednesday after Oman's foreign minister said a new round of nuclear talks between Iran and the U.S. would take place later this week. Oil prices rose in early trading after a CNN report on Tuesday said U.S. intelligence showed Israel was preparing to strike Iran's nuclear facilities. CNN cited U.S. officials and added that it was not clear whether Israeli leaders had made a final decision. Brent crude futures fell 47 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $64.91 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 46 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $61.57. Iran is the third-largest oil...