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...
Global oil prices are on track for their deepest annual decline since the 2020 pandemic. The main pressure comes from market concerns about a large supply surplus, which is expected to continue to cloud trade well into the new year. The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate (WTI), fell below US$58 per barrel, down nearly 20% so far this year. Meanwhile, Brent for March delivery remained around US$61 per barrel. In the short term, market participants' attention is focused on the OPEC+ meeting scheduled for January 4th. Furthermore, negative US oil industry reports have weighed on sentiment....
Oil was steady after a choppy session on Tuesday as investors weighed dented hopes of a Russia-Ukraine peace deal and rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East around Yemen. Brent crude futures for February delivery , which expire on Tuesday, settled down 2 cents, or 0.03%, at $61.92 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude settled down 13 cents, or 0.22%, at $57.95. On Monday, both benchmarks settled more than 2% higher as Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes against Yemen and after Moscow accused Kyiv of targeting a Russian presidential residence, denting hopes of a peace...
The precious metal recovered on Tuesday (December 30) after a sharp fall in the previous session, as markets refocused on geopolitical and economic risks, reviving gold's rally to close out its best year since 1979. Spot gold prices rose 0.8% to $4,365.86 an ounce at 9:56 a.m. ET (1456 GMT). On Monday, gold posted its biggest daily percentage drop since October 21 as profit-taking pushed it down from Friday's record high of $4,549.71. U.S. gold futures rose 0.8% to $4,380.10. "We saw some pretty extreme volatility yesterday where we saw strong action in Asian trading to the upside and then...
Oil prices remained firm as traders weighed geopolitical tensions from Venezuela to Russia and Yemen against concerns about a global oversupply. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) prices reached over $58 per barrel in quiet trading ahead of the holidays. The United Arab Emirates said it would withdraw troops from Yemen after escalating tensions with its oil-rich ally, Saudi Arabia, over military operations in the conflict-torn country. At the same time, President Donald Trump's efforts to end the war in Ukraine faced a new obstacle after Russia's Vladimir Putin said he would revise his...
Gold prices rebounded after being under pressure in the previous session. This increase occurred as investors sought safe havens amid ongoing global uncertainty. A cautious market ahead of the release of the Federal Reserve minutes has led to renewed interest in gold as a hedge. The main sentiment stemmed from expectations that the Fed would be less aggressive going forward. The prospect of lower interest rates has diminished the appeal of the US dollar, making non-yielding gold more attractive. Furthermore, geopolitical tensions in various regions have boosted demand for gold as a safe...