The Hang Seng rose 192 points, or 0.7%, to finish at 26,160 on Friday, extending gains from the prior session. The increase came after Shanghai shares hit a 10-year peak, on strong inflows and China's pledge at the conclusion of a plenum to boost the household consumption's share in GDP over the next five years. Policymakers also reaffirmed their commitment to meet 2025 economic targets and support tech self-reliance. Gains were broad-based, led by tech, consumer, and property stocks. SMIC jumped 7.4%, followed by Horizon Robotics (6.1%), China Hongqiao Group (4.1%), and Trip.com...
Gold edged lower on Monday (August 25th) as the dollar strengthened, weakening from a two-week high reached in the previous session after comments from US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reinforced speculation of an interest rate cut. Spot gold edged down 0.3% to $3,362.56 an ounce, as of 09:14 GMT, after hitting its highest level since August 11th on Friday. US gold futures for December delivery fell 0.3% to $3,407.30. The dollar index rose 0.2%, making gold more expensive for holders of other currencies. Powell on Friday hinted at the possibility of a rate cut at next month's Fed...
Oil prices rose on Monday (August 25th) as traders weighed concerns that Russian supplies could be disrupted by tighter U.S. sanctions and a Ukrainian attack targeting Russian energy infrastructure. Brent crude futures rose 29 cents, or 0.4%, to $68.02 at 08:39 GMT, and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 36 cents, or 0.6%, to $64.02. "The market is somewhat concerned that these peace negotiations will not bear fruit," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank. "The market expects supply to exceed demand in the autumn months, but in the short term, it is being...
Silver prices (XAG/USD) experienced a slight correction during Monday's (August 25th) European trading session, after rallying for three consecutive days. The precious metal was trading around $38.80 per troy ounce, although the medium-term uptrend remains strong. Fundamentally, expectations of a Fed rate cut next month continue to support non-yielding precious metals like silver. The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) is above 50, reinforcing the bullish bias. Furthermore, silver is trading above the nine-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), indicating stronger short-term price...
The US dollar strengthened slightly on Monday (August 25th), but struggled to recover from a sharp decline triggered by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's dovish stance, which left the door open for an interest rate cut in the world's largest economy next month. The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1701 but remained near Friday's high of $1.174225, a level not seen since July 28th. The pound and Swiss franc also weakened by about 0.1%. Powell, in a closely watched speech at the Fed's annual Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, hinted at the possibility of an interest rate cut at the US central...
The British pound (GBP) maintained its gains on Friday near 1.3530 against the US dollar (USD) during the European trading session on Monday (August 25th). The GBP/USD pair traded strongly as comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, during his speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday, signaled that he had taken a dovish stance on the interest rate outlook. Investors had anticipated that Powell would reiterate his "wait-and-see" approach to interest rates. However, this surprisingly dovish tone has significantly increased investor risk appetite. However, the US dollar and...