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...
Oil prices slipped about 2% on Tuesday, marking a third straight day of declines as investors considered the impact of U.S. sanctions against Russia's two biggest oil companies on global supply, along with a potential OPEC+ plan to raise output. Brent crude futures settled down $1.22, or 1.9%, to $64.40 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled down $1.16, or 1.9%, at $60.15. Brent and WTI last week registered their biggest weekly gains since June, reacting to U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to impose Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia for the first time in his...
AUD/USD firms as traders brace for Australia Q3 inflation data and Fed decision The Australian Dollar (AUD) edges higher against the US Dollar (USD) on Tuesday, extending its winning streak for the fifth consecutive session as the Greenback stays under pressure ahead of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate decision on Wednesday. At the time of writing, AUD/USD trades around 0.6586, up nearly 0.5% on the day and marking its highest level in over two weeks. Traders are turning their attention to key Australian inflation data due early Wednesday, which could shape expectations for the...
The dollar index was little changed around 98.8 on Tuesday, as traders avoided making major moves ahead of the FOMC meeting, with the Federal Reserve widely expected to announce another 25-basis-point cut to the federal funds rate on Wednesday. Investors also looked ahead to Thursday's planned meeting between US President Trump and Chinese President Xi, where the two leaders are expected to discuss a potential trade deal following reports that officials have agreed on a preliminary framework covering rare earth minerals, soybean purchases, and TikTok. The dollar fell sharply against the...
Gold (XAU/USD) continued its decline on Tuesday (October 28th) as investors shifted away from safe-haven assets amid a resurgent risk-on sentiment. At the time of writing, XAU/USD was trading around $3,925, down nearly 1.3% on the day, after briefly dipping below $3,900, marking its lowest level in three weeks. The risk-on mood was fueled by optimism surrounding a potential US-China trade truce, with attention focused on the upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, scheduled for Thursday on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea. The...