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 Japanese Yen (JPY) builds on last week's strong gains against its American counterpart and drags the USD/JPY pair below the 149.00 mark, or the lowest level since early December during the Asian session on Monday. Japan's strong Consumer Price Index (CPI) released on Friday comes on top of the upbeat Q4 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth report last week. This, along with expectations that sustained wage gains would spur consumer spending, suggests that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) might hike interest rates more aggressively than initially thought and continue to underpin the JPY. Apart...
The GBP/USD pair kicks off the new week on a positive note and climbs above mid-1.2600s during the Asian session, closer to over a two-month top touched on Friday. Spot prices now look to build on the momentum beyond the 100-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) amid a weaker sentiment surrounding the US Dollar (USD). In fact, the USD Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback against a basket of currencies, drops to its lowest level since December 10 amid doubts about US consumer health, fueled by a disappointing sales forecast from Walmart. Moreover, worries over the impact of US President Donald...
AUD/USD drifts higher to near 0.6370 in Monday's early Asian session, adding 0.25% on the day. China vowed to adopt more targeted measures to stimulate consumer spending, supporting the Aussie. Renewed trade tensions could boost the US dollar and cap the upside for the pair. The AUD/USD pair edges higher to near 0.6370 during the early Asian session on Monday. The Australian Dollar (AUD) attracts some buyers as the Chinese government announced rural revitalisation plans in its annual policy blueprint. According to the State Council's annual rural policy blueprint, China will intensify rural...
Gold traded just shy of last week's all-time high as unexpectedly weak economic data and rising expectations for inflation helped boost haven demand. Bullion was around $2,937 an ounce, after notching its eighth weekly gain — the longest run since 2020. Gains have been supported by a sharp increase in demand for bullion-backed exchange-traded funds, with holdings last week jumping the most since 2022. Reports on Friday showed US business activity slowed, consumer confidence waned and expectations for inflation surged. The Federal Reserve's Chicago President Austan...
Gold touches all-time high of $2,954 amid trade policy uncertainty.Trump expands tariffs to lumber and soft commodities, adding market jitters.US data mixed: Manufacturing PMI improves, but Services PMI contracts.Gold price slides late on Friday, poised to end the week positively, accumulating eight straight weeks of gains that pushed the yellow metal to all-time highs of $2,954. At the time of writing, the XAU/USD trades at $2,940, down 0.15%. The financial markets' narrative has not changed as US President Donald Trump continues with rhetoric related to tariffs. In addition to imposing...