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 AUD/USD pair struggles to capitalize on the overnight bounce from the 0.6270 area or a one-week low and meets with a fresh supply on Friday. Spot prices remain depressed below the 0.6300 mark through the first of the European session and could slide further amid a goodish pickup in the US Dollar (USD) demand. The Federal Reserve (Fed) maintained its forecast for two 25 basis points rate cuts in 2025 at the end of March policy meeting on Wednesday and gave a bump higher to its inflation projection. The outlook assists the Greenback to build on its modest recovery from a multi-month low...
EUR/USD trades lower to near the 10-day low of 1.0815 in Friday's North American session. The major currency pair faces selling pressure as the US Dollar (USD) strengthens after the Federal Reserve (Fed) expressed in the policy meeting on Wednesday that interest rate cuts are not on the table in the current scenario. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback's value against six major currencies, rises to near 104.15. On Wednesday, the Fed kept interest rates steady in the range of 4.25%-4.50% for the second time in a row, as expected. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in the press...
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the performance of the US Dollar (USD) against six major currencies, is able to print a third consecutive day of gains, trading around 104.00 at the time of writing on Friday. The DXY tries to move away from the 2025 low at 103.20 reached on Tuesday, after the Financial Times reported European countries are drawing up plans to take on responsibilities for the continent's defence from the United States (US), including a pitch to the Trump administration for a managed transfer over the next five to 10 years, which would reshape the North Atlantic Treaty...
The Pound Sterling (GBP) is dropping some 0.29% against the US Dollar (USD) on Friday, set to end the week unchanged after major central banks featured monetary policy decisions led by the Federal Reserve (Fed) and the Bank of England (BoE). At the time of writing, GBP/USD is trading at 1.2931 after hitting a daily peak of 1.2969. Sterling drops 0.29%, set to end the week flat after dovish Fed and BoE toneThe market mood remains downbeat, as depicted by United States (US) equities posting losses, while the Greenback remains bid. On Thursday, the BoE kept rates unchanged and said there is...
The USD/JPY pair gives up entire intraday gains after facing selling pressure around 149.60 and drops to near 148.60 during North American trading hours on Friday. The asset drops as the US Dollar (USD) gains, with the US Dollar Index (DXY) rising to near 104.00. The Greenback attracts bids as the Federal Reserve (Fed) is unlikely to cut interest rates in the near term. On Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated that they are not in a hurry to cut interest rates amid "unusually elevated" uncertainty over the United States (US) economic outlook under the leadership of President Donald...