The Hang Seng Index opened slightly lower by 0.07% to 26,263 on Friday (October 31st), moving flat after a 0.2% decline in the previous session to 26,283. This cautious movement occurred amid mixed sentiment: some technology stocks weakened, while the market digested news of a US-China trade truce that had not yet fully boosted risk appetite. Data-wise, China's manufacturing PMI contracted again in October, signaling continued pressure on the factory sector and curbing the Hong Kong stock market rally. Meanwhile, Asian market analysts noted that regional stocks are likely to strengthen this...
Bank of Japan (BOJ) board member Naoki Tamura's remarks on Thursday (Feb. 6) have boosted the yen, as he suggested interest rates should reach at least 1% in the second half of the fiscal year starting in April 2025. Tamura, known for his hawkish stance, indicated that the BOJ should act in response to rising inflationary pressures from rising raw material and labor costs. Tamura's remarks have fueled market expectations of a near-term rate hike, with the yen strengthening against the dollar, which fell to a two-month low of 151.81 yen. Furthermore, the yield on the two-year Japanese...
The dollar edged up on Thursday, but stayed close to recent lows, as traders weighed receding trade war risks and looked ahead to Friday's key U.S. data, while sterling dipped ahead of the Bank of England's policy decision. The yen touched an eight-week top versus the U.S. dollar after a Bank of Japan policy board member advocated continued interest rate hikes, but pared the gains and was broadly flat in European trade. The dollar rose against a basket of peers to 108, but still hovered near the lowest level since the start of last week, with investors beginning to entertain prospects that...
Oil prices edged up on Thursday after Saudi Arabia's state oil company raised its March crude prices sharply, but the gains barely dented the previous day's slide in benchmark Brent crude. Brent crude futures rose 28 cents, or 0.4%, to $74.89 a barrel by 0952 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 35 cents, or 0.5%, at $71.38. Oil prices had plunged by more than 2% on Wednesday as a large build in U.S. crude and gasoline stockpiles signalled weaker demand while investors also weighed up the implications of a new round of U.S.-China trade tariffs, including duties on energy...
Silver prices (XAG/USD) fell on Thursday, according to FXStreet data. Silver trades at $32.08 per troy ounce, down 0.53% from the $32.25 it cost on Wednesday. Silver prices have increased by 11.03% since the beginning of the year. The Gold/Silver ratio, which shows the number of ounces of Silver needed to equal the value of one ounce of Gold, stood at 89.05 on Thursday, up from 88.76 on Wednesday. Sumber : Fxstreet
Gold futures tick lower, but keep near record highs. Futures slide 0.4% to $2,881.30 a troy ounce, after hitting a fresh record of $2,906 in the prior session. Gold's bull market looks set to continue under the Trump administration, with trade wars and geopolitical tensions reinforcing trends toward central bank reserve diversification and de-dollarization, Citi analysts say. Support from emerging market central bank gold demand and global growth concerns should raise both ETF and physical gold demand, they say in a note. A Russia-Ukraine peace deal, and clarity around whether gold will be...