European stock markets appeared calm on Tuesday, following a strong rally in the previous session. Major indices such as the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 moved flat as investors chose to wait for new direction while assessing news from various major companies. The property and utilities sectors posted positive performances, followed by banking stocks, which also gained slightly. Conversely, stocks in the chemical and food and beverage sectors weakened. L'Oréal recorded a slight decline, while UniCredit rose slightly ahead of its latest financial report. On the positive side, Assa Abloy shares...
Oil prices are mixed in the early Asian trade, but may be supported by supply-disruption risks. Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure, ANZ Research analysts say in a research report. Another drone attack struck Russia's Kinef refinery, which has an annual processing capacity of over 20 million tons, the analysts note. "This follows last week's wave of attacks which Ukraine claimed have struck facilities handling almost half of Russia's seaborne crude exports," the analysts add. Front-month WTI crude oil futures are little changed at $63.32/bbl; front-month Brent...
Gold is steady in the early Asian trade ahead of the FOMC's two-day meeting that starts today and major U.S. economic data such as retail sales due out today. Given expectations of a Fed rate cut and continuing geopolitical tensions, gold has settled into a high-level consolidation, Pepperstone's Dilin Wu says in an email. The FOMC meeting and U.S. retail sales will likely be the key events to monitor, possibly shaping whether the precious metal can resume a directional trend, the research strategist adds. Spot gold is little changed at $3,678.38/oz. Source: Bloomberg
The Australian Dollar (AUD) strengthened slightly against the US Dollar (USD) on Monday, extending its gains as the greenback remained on the defensive. This move came amid strong confidence that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will cut interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) at its monetary policy meeting on Wednesday, a scenario the market now views as a done deal. At the time of writing, AUD/USD was trading near 0.6672, its strongest level in more than ten months. The currency pair has benefited from the broad USD weakness, as traders fully anticipate imminent Fed policy easing. Meanwhile, the...
Gold rose to an all-time high on Monday (September 15), boosted by a weaker dollar and falling U.S. Treasury yields, as investors prepared for this week's crucial Federal Reserve meeting that could set the tone for the rest of the year. Spot gold rose 1.1% to $3,680.80 an ounce at 1:44 p.m. EDT (1744 GMT), after hitting a record high of $3,685.39 earlier in the session. Bullion prices rose about 1.6% last week. U.S. gold futures for December delivery closed 0.8% higher at $3,719.00. The dollar index fell 0.3% to a one-week low, making gold more attractive to holders of other currencies,...
Oil prices rose on Monday as investors assessed the impact of Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries and U.S. President Donald Trump's call for NATO countries to halt purchases of Russian oil. Brent crude futures closed up 45 cents, or 0.67%, at $67.44 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude closed up 61 cents, or 0.97%, at $63.30 a barrel. The attack on Russian oil infrastructure and Trump's increasing pressure on buyers of Russian crude boosted oil prices on Monday, said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group. "Behind the scenes, there are a lot of...