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...
Silver slipped below $41.5 per ounce on Thursday, falling for a third consecutive session after the US Federal Reserve delivered a widely expected quarter-point rate cut but struck a more cautious stance on further easing than markets anticipated. The Fed signaled two more reductions this year but only one in 2026, pushing back against expectations for two or three cuts next year. Chair Jerome Powell described the move as "risk management" in response to labor market weakness, while emphasizing there is no urgency to accelerate cuts. Elsewhere, the Bank of Canada also lowered its policy...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) edges lower during the Asian session on Thursday in reaction to the weaker-than-expected release of Core Machinery Orders data from Japan. This, along with a further US Dollar (USD) recovery from the post-FOMC swing low to the lowest level since February 2022, acts as a tailwind for the USD/JPY pair . Moreover, concerns that domestic political uncertainty could give the Bank of Japan (BoJ) more reasons to delay raising interest rates, along with the underlying bullish sentiment, seem to undermine the safe-haven JPY. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve's (Fed) dovish...
The U.S. dollar was steady early on Thursday following its plunge to a 3-1/2-year low and then forceful rebound as traders grappled with the ramifications of the Federal Reserve's measured rhetoric on further interest rate cuts. The Fed reduced rates by a quarter point on Wednesday, as expected, and indicated it will steadily lower borrowing costs for the rest of this year, initially sending the dollar plunging. However, Fed Chair Powell characterised the day's policy action as a risk-management cut in response to the weakening labour market, but the central bank does not need to...
Gold rises in the early Asian session amid prospects of further Fed rate cuts that would bolster the appeal of the non-interest-bearing precious metal. The Fed approved a 25bps rate reduction on Wednesday, with a narrow majority of officials penciling in at least two more cuts this year. "Investors cheered the beginning of the rate cut cycle," ANZ Research analysts say in a research report. However, gold price's gains have been curbed by Fed Chair Powell's remarks that were perceived as less dovish than the market had been expecting, the analysts add. Spot gold is 0.3% higher at...
Oil held a decline as traders weighed the impact of the Federal Reserve's interest-rate cut, alongside warnings of mounting US labor market weakness. West Texas Intermediate held steady at $64.13 a barrel, after falling 0.7% the previous day. Brent closed 0.8% lower on Wednesday, as traders had mostly priced in the 25 basis-point cut ahead of the Fed's decision and unwound hedges against a larger reduction. The decline cooled a three-session rally following concerns over oil flows amid Ukraine's attacks on Russian refineries, while oil markets are expected to face oversupply...