Three major US indexes closed at new record highs after a lower-than-expected inflation report raised the possibility of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut later this year and prompted investors to shift to riskier assets. The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, the Nasdaq rose 1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 470 points. Technology stocks led the rally, with AMD and IBM surging 7.5% and 8.77%, respectively, after IBM said it had successfully implemented a key quantum error correction algorithm on AMD chips, boosting sentiment across the sector. Intel rose 1.6% after returning to...
The USD/CHF pair weakens to near 0.9110, snapping the four-day winning streak during the early European session on Friday. The safe-haven flows demand amid the persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict boosts the Swiss Franc (CHF) against the Greenback. On Thursday, Joe Biden reportedly discussed plans to attack Iran's nuclear facilities in the event Tehran moved closer to building a nuclear bomb before Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20, three sources with knowledge of the issue tell Axios. Investors will closely monitor the...
The USD/JPY pair edges lower to near 157.30 during the Asian trading hours on Friday. The verbal intervention from the Japanese authorities provides some support to the Japanese Yen (JPY). However, the uncertainty surrounding the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) policy outlook might cap the JPY's upside. Markets in Japan are closed for the rest of the week. Traders brace for the US ISM Manufacturing PMI for December, which is due later on Friday. Traders will closely monitor any potential foreign exchange (FX) intervention by Japanese officials to prevent the JPY from depreciating. Japan Finance...
Gold prices retreated from a three-week high on Friday, pressured by a robust dollar, while markets braced for potential economic and trade shifts under U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Spot gold eased 0.3% to $2,649.29 an ounce, after hitting its highest level since Dec. 13. Bullion is up about 1.1% for the week so far. U.S. gold futures were down 0.2% at $2,663.70. The new president's agenda that supports higher tariffs has boosted the dollar and created significant underlying pressure on metal markets, said Nitesh Shah, commodity strategist at WisdomTree. The dollar index was set...
Gold prices (XAU/USD) moved higher in the European session on Friday ahead of the United States (US) ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data for December, due to be published at 15:00 GMT. The Manufacturing PMI was seen steady at 48.4, indicating that activity contracted at a steady pace. The precious metal has outperformed in 2024 with a gain of over 27%, the metal's best annual return since 2010. The sustained rally was driven by strong safe-haven demand amid persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. According to three...
Oil prices were little changed on Friday after closing at their highest in more than two months in the previous session, amid hopes that governments around the world could step up policy support to revive economic growth that would boost fuel demand. Brent crude futures edged up 1 cent to $75.94 a barrel by 0720 GMT, after settling at their highest since Oct. 25 on Thursday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude also rose 1 cent to $73.14 a barrel, with Thursday's settlement the highest since Oct. 14. Both contracts were on track for a second weekly gain after investors returned from...