The European stock markets closed mostly higher in Thursday trading as the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.92%, Germany's DAX climbed 1.12%, the FTSE 100 was off 0.69%, France's CAC increased 0.97%, and the Swiss Market Index was up 0.80%. In Germany, price-adjusted production in the manufacturing sector declined 1.9% in June compared with May, according to preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office, falling to its lowest level since May 2020 during the COVID pandemic. In the UK, house prices rose 0.4% in July from June, the highest monthly rise since the start of the year, according to...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) remains edged against the US Dollar (USD) following two days of gains, as Australia's mixed Producer Price Index (PPI) data for the third quarter was released on Friday . However, expectations of a hawkish stance from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) continue to support the Aussie Dollar, limiting losses in the AUD/USD pair. Australia's Producer Price Index rose by 0.9% quarter-on-quarter in Q3, following a 1.0% increase in the previous period and surpassing market forecasts of a 0.7% rise. This marks the 17th consecutive period of producer inflation. On an...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) retraces some of its recent gains following the release of the Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) by Jibun Bank and S&P Global on Friday. However, the USD/JPY pair declined as the JPY strengthened after post-meeting comments from Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda on Thursday, which were seen as increasing the likelihood of a rate hike in December. The headline au Jibun Bank Japan Manufacturing PMI stood at 49.2 in October, indicating a decline from 49.7 in September. This composite single-figure indicator shows that Japanese manufacturing...
Gold prices (XAU/USD) recovered from Friday's losses. Uncertainties surrounding the US presidential election and ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East provided some support to the precious metal, a traditional safe-haven asset. However, rising US Treasury yields and a stronger US Dollar (USD) may weigh on the yellow metal. Traders will be eyeing the US October jobs report on Friday for fresh impetus, including Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP), Unemployment Rate, and Average Hourly Earnings. A stronger reading could boost bets for less aggressive policy easing by the Federal Reserve (Fed),...
Gold steadied around $2,750 an ounce on Friday after losing more than 1% in the previous session, as markets weighed demand for safety against pressure from a less dovish Federal Reserve. The latest U.S. data revealed strong personal income and spending figures, a rise in underlying inflation that remained above target, and an unexpected drop in jobless claims. This reinforced the perception that the U.S. economy is resilient to higher borrowing costs and gave the Fed more room to avoid implementing aggressive cuts. However, political uncertainty in the U.S. is supportive of gold, as the...
Oil jumped after a report that Iran could be preparing to attack Israel from Iraqi territory in the coming days, jolting the market's attention back to a potential flare-up of Middle East hostilities. Brent surged as much as 2% to trade above $74 a barrel on Friday, while West Texas Intermediate rallied toward $71. Iran is planning a strike through militias it backs in Iraq, which is expected to be carried out with drones and ballistic missiles, Axios reported, citing two Israeli sources it didn't name. Oil tumbled at the start of the week after a limited Israeli attack on...