A sliding yen boosted the dollar on Thursday as the Bank of Japan lowered growth forecasts in light of U.S. tariffs and left rates on hold, while investors watched for signs of the trade war cooling and awaited U.S. labour market data. The yen dropped by as much as 1.1% to 144.74 per dollar, its weakest since April 10. It was last at 144.33 per dollar. The central bank's hold on interest rates was unanimous and anticipated, but investors saw the downgraded outlook as reducing the likelihood of future hikes. "It was no surprise that they revised both the growth and inflation down but both...
The Pound Sterling (GBP) recovers early losses and turns slightly positive to near 1.3340 against the US Dollar (USD) during European trading hours on Thursday. The GBP/USD pair attracts bids as the US Dollar (USD) faces pressure, while extending its two-day recovery, a move that is driven by hopes that fears of global disruption due to the imposition of additional tariffs by United States (US) President Donald Trump have peaked. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback's value against six major currencies, struggles to break above the fortnightly high around 100.00. The USD...
Gold futures slide, under pressure from a stronger U.S. dollar and profit taking. Futures are down 2.65% at $3,231.0 a troy ounce, though they remain up 20% in the year-to-date. Prices have now fallen nearly 7.9% since setting a fresh record high of $3,509.90/oz on April 22. Market risk appetite has grown and reduced demand for safe-haven assets amid rising hopes for President Trump's administration signing trade deals in the near-term. China, currently the largest consumer of gold given economic concerns, has also begun the May Day holiday. This has further reduced upward pressure on gold...
Oil rose again on Thursday after strong earnings from Meta and Microsoft supported US equities and offset concerns about the US economy and the prospect of higher OPEC+ oil output. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 47 cents, or 0.8%, to $58.68 a barrel by 1442 GMT. Brent crude futures rose 71 cents, or 1.2%, to $61.77. Both contracts had fallen more than 1% earlier. "It (oil price gains) can be attributed to the surge in equities due to the attractive earnings from Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab and Meta (META.O), opens new tab and possibly the postponement of the next...
Gold slumped to its lowest in two weeks on Thursday, pressured by signs of easing trade tensions and a holiday in key consumer China, while focus was also on Friday's U.S. payrolls report to gauge the economic outlook. Spot gold fell 2.3% to $3,211.53 an ounce by 1:44 p.m. ET (1744 GMT), after hitting its lowest since April 14 earlier in the session. It hit a record $3,500.05 an ounce last week. U.S. gold futures settled 2.9% lower at $3,222.20. "There are signs of an impending trade deal, and talk from China that the Trump administration has been in touch. The risk-on trade is taking...