European stocks closed slightly higher on Wednesday, tracking the rebound in North American equities as speculation on future AI returns continued to dictate risk sentiment. The Eurozone's STOXX 50 rose 0.2% to 5,670 and the pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.3% to 572. Industrial giants and auto producers led the gains in the session to rebound from their losses yesterday, with Schneider Electric and Wolters Kluwer advancing between 2% and 1.5%. In the meantime, BMW surged close to 7% after posting improved margins despite dealing with tariff uncertainties in the third quarter, lifting shares...
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the performance of the US Dollar (USD) against a basket of six major currencies, extended its recovery and was trading around 104.00 at the time of writing on Friday (3/21). The DXY is trying to move away from a 2025 low of 103.20 hit on Tuesday, after the Financial Times reported that European countries are drawing up plans to take over responsibility for the continent's defense from the United States (US), including an offer to the Trump administration for a managed transfer over the next five to 10 years, which would reshape the North Atlantic...
Oil was little changed in the final trading session of the week as traders weighed the first U.S. sanctions on Chinese imports of Iranian crude against the uncertain outlook for global growth. Brent crude futures fell slightly below $72 a barrel, erasing earlier gains, while still posting their biggest weekly gain since January. The U.S. sanctioned a small Chinese refiner and its chief executive for allegedly buying Iranian oil, as well as a terminal operator. The market structure for Middle East crude firmed after the news. The Trump administration's first intervention in the Asian...
Gold (XAU/USD) is facing a second day of losses while its weekly performance is still positive. The precious metal is trading around $3,030 at the time of writing on Friday (3/21) after hitting a new all-time high of $3,057 the previous day. The move down should not come as a surprise given the Quadruple Witching event. Quadruple Witching is an event in the financial markets when four different sets of futures and options contracts expire on the same day, and investors must decide whether to sell and buy back their positions or simply sell them. Meanwhile, on the geopolitical front,...
EUR/USD traded lower near a 10-day low of 1.0815 during the European session on Friday (3/21). The major currency pair faced selling pressure as the US Dollar (USD) strengthened after the Federal Reserve (Fed) stated that an interest rate cut is not on the cards in the current scenario. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, rose near 104.15. On Wednesday, the Fed kept interest rates unchanged at 4.25%-4.50% for the second consecutive day, as expected. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said in a press conference that the central bank will...
Gold prices were on track for a third straight weekly gain on Friday, helped by the US Federal Reserve's hint of a rate cut this year and safe-haven demand amid geopolitical and economic uncertainty. Bullion prices hit an all-time high of $3,057.21 an ounce on Thursday and have gained about 1.5% so far this week. Spot gold was down 0.5% at $3,028.77 an ounce by 0700 GMT, weighed down by a stronger US dollar. US gold futures were down 0.3% at $3,035.70. "Gold prices traded slightly lower in Asia today as the US dollar strengthened across major currencies," said Kelvin Wong, senior market...