Stocks were lower Thursday as investors digested a batch of Big Tech earnings, while a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 131 points, or 0.3%. The S&P 500 dipped 0.6%. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.8%. Megacap tech giants Alphabet, Meta and Microsoft each reported quarterly results after market close Wednesday. While Alphabet shares popped about 4% on the back of strong results, shares of Meta and Microsoft tumbled about 12% and nearly 2%, respectively. Investors grew worried about the increased...
Oil prices edged up in volatile trade on Monday but closed at a one-month low on the expiration of a higher-priced contract, as the market digested U.S. President Donald Trump's planned imposition of tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China.Concerns over imports from two of the main crude suppliers to the U.S. boosted prices by over $1 a barrel earlier in the session before Trump paused the new tariffs on Mexico for one month as Mexico agreed to reinforce its northern border to stem the flow of illegal drugs, particularly fentanyl.Brent futures for April delivery rose 29 cents, or 0.4%, from...
Gold futures rose 0.2% to $2,839.60 an ounce, although a stronger U.S. dollar limited its upside potential as a safe haven. The precious metal is up 2.5% for the week and 6.3% so far this year. Gold started the week on a mixed note, balancing between risk aversion and a stronger U.S. dollar after President Trump imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, said Nikos Tzabouras of Tradu.com. After hitting a new record high on Friday, the precious metal still has room to rise as the trade war boosts safe-haven demand, Tzabouras said in a note. However, the prospect of higher inflation under...
The U.S. crude benchmark outpaced gains in other oil markets after President Donald Trump announced tariffs that threaten flows from America's two biggest foreign suppliers. West Texas Intermediate crude rose to $2.65 a barrel on Monday, compared with $1.67 for Brent, narrowing the spread between the two grades to the smallest since September 2023. The narrowing gap underscores risks to U.S. supply, both from Canadian flows into the Oklahoma storage hub where U.S. crude futures are priced, and from Mexican shipments into the Gulf Coast. Source: Bloomberg
EUR/USD plunged more than 1% to near 1.0240 at the start of the week. The major currency pair plunged as US President Donald Trump reiterated his threat to impose tariffs on the European Union (EU). Over the weekend, Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10% on China. Trump also warned that he would also increase levies on the trading bloc, but he did not provide much information. "That will definitely happen with the European Union. I can tell you that because they have really taken advantage of us," Trump said. He also accused the old continent of not buying enough US...
Gold rose above $2,800 an ounce in February, holding near a record high amid a wave of monetary policy easing from major central banks as markets assess the impact of the ongoing trade war in North America and China on the global economy. The U.S. imposed 10% tariffs on China and 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, with concerns about lower growth weighing on the likelihood of an aggressive Fed reaction that limited the impact on rate-sensitive assets. However, markets are expecting the Fed to deliver two interest rate cuts this year. In turn, the Bank of Canada cut its key interest rate and...