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...
Gold prices fell more than 2% on Friday (October 17th) after hitting a record high above $4,300 an ounce, pressured by a strengthening dollar and comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that "full-scale" tariffs on China would be unsustainable. Spot gold fell 1.7% to $4,251.19 an ounce at 11:37 a.m. ET (15:37 GMT), after hitting an all-time high of $4,378.69 earlier in the session. The precious metal broke through $4,300/ounce for the first time on Thursday, and is expected to post a weekly gain of 5.8%. U.S. gold futures for December delivery fell 0.8% to $4,268.60. The dollar index rose...
Oil is teetering on a third week of declines, weighed down by signs the market is reaching the surplus analysts have been waiting for. West Texas Intermediate is trading near $57 a barrel, expected to fall about 3% this week in its longest decline since March. Oversupply news continued to emerge this week. The International Energy Agency (IEA) raised its forecast for a global oversupply next year by about 18%. And a US storage broker reported a surge in bids to secure tanker capacity at the country's main crude hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, underscoring that traders are preparing for a supply...
Gold (XAU/USD) is on a record-breaking spree, hitting yet another all-time high near $4,380 on Friday as investors seek a reliable store of value amid geopolitical, economic and fiscal uncertainty. At the time of writing, XAU/USD is trading around $4,292, easing from record highs and down nearly 0.80% on the day. Despite the pullback, the metal remains on track for its ninth consecutive weekly gain. Lingering concerns over the prolonged US-China trade standoff remain a key driver behind Gold's recent surge as trade tensions continue to cast a shadow over global growth prospects. The rally...
Silver hovered all-time highs above $54 per ounce on Friday and was poised to gain about 8% for the week, supported by tightening global supply and strong safe-haven demand. Markets were rattled after two US regional banks disclosed loan problems involving alleged fraud, heightening fears of broader credit market stress. Escalating US-China trade tensions, the prolonged US government shutdown, and growing expectations of further Federal Reserve rate cuts also bolstered appetite for precious metals. Geopolitical risks and concerns over surging government spending and debt further fueled...
The US dollar and Treasury yields fell after Zions Bancorp and Western Alliance admitted to fraudulent lending to funds investing in troubled commercial mortgages. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index weakened 0.1% (the fourth straight day) and is heading for its worst week since July. The bond rally pushed the 2-year yield to its lowest level since September 2022, and the 5-year yield to its lowest since October 2024. "The USD moved lower as yields fell and regional bank concerns increased," said Mahjabeen Zaman (ANZ). USD/JPY briefly fell 0.3% to 149.93, breaking below 150 for the first time...