European shares closed flat on Wednesday, surrendering early session gains, as healthcare stocks felt the pinch from U.S. President Donald Trump's latest threat to impose higher tariffs on pharmaceutical imports. The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed 0.06% lower, breaking its two-day winning streak despite starting the session on a positive note. Healthcare stocks bore the brunt of the selling pressure. The sector index plunged 2.8% to its lowest level in more than three months after Trump unveiled a graduated tariff plan targeting pharmaceutical imports that could see levies on the...
Oil prices rose on Tuesday after falling more than $2 a barrel in the previous session as investors took stock of a potential ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah, which had weighed on oil's risk premium. Brent crude futures were up 73 cents, or 1%, to $73.74 a barrel as of 1018 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $69.62 a barrel, up 68 cents, also 1%. Prices fell sharply on Monday after multiple reports that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to the terms of a deal to end the Israel-Hezbollah conflict. A senior Israeli official said Israel looks set to approve a...
Gold futures rise, recouping some ground after a 3.7% drop on Monday. Futures are up 0.4% at $2,629.70 a troy ounce. The precious metal remains under pressure on renewed risk appetite in financial markets, says ActivTrades' Ricardo Evangelista. Trump's nomination of Scott Bessent, viewed as a balanced choice for U.S. Treasury Secretary, has eased fears that a second Trump administration's tariff-heavy policies could reignite inflation and stifle economic growth, Evangelista says in a note. Reports of a potential ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah have also reduced safe-haven...
Gold steadied after declining earlier as Donald Trump's threat of 25% import tariffs on Canada and Mexico buoyed the dollar. The US president-elect said the import taxes were necessary to clamp down on migrants and illegal drugs crossing America's borders. He also vowed to impose additional 10% tariffs on goods from China. The subsequent strengthening of the dollar made gold more expensive for many buyers. Bullion traded near $2,630 an ounce after slumping 3.4% in the previous session amid a potential easing of tensions in the Middle East. Israel's security cabinet is...
Gold price (XAU/USD) struggles to capitalize on its intraday bounce from the $2,600 neighborhood, or over a one-week low and remains depressed for the second successive day heading into the European session on Tuesday. US President-elect Donald Trump's tariff threat drove some haven flows and provided a modest intraday lift to the safe-haven precious metal. That said, expectations for a less dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) caps the upside for the non-yielding yellow metal. Meanwhile, the growing market conviction that Trump's expansionary policies will reignite inflation and force the Fed to...
Silver prices remained around $30.30 per ounce on Tuesday, following a more than 3% decline in the previous session, as demand for safe-haven assets like precious metals faded. The pullback came amid reports that Israel and Hezbollah were nearing a ceasefire agreement, which helped ease tensions in the Middle East. Market sentiment was further bolstered by the nomination of Scott Bessent as US Treasury Secretary, which brought a sense of stability to investors. Bessent, who has stated that Trump's goal is not to trigger inflation, also suggested that any new tariffs should be phased in...