US stock futures steady as rate cut cheer grows
U.S. stock index futures rose slightly in evening deals on Wednesday, extending gains from Wall Street as the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s recent meeting fueled growing conviction that the central bank will cut rates. More signs of a cooling labor market also factored into expectations for rate cuts, with the Fed now…
Australia’s central bank faces crunch time in resistance to rate cuts
Australia’s central bank is set to come under intense pressure to ease policy in coming weeks as government giveaways to alleviate the cost of living pull consumer prices sharply lower, even as core inflation stays stubbornly sticky. Data for July next week will likely show headline inflation diving back into the Reserve Bank…
China keeps loan prime rate unchanged after surprise cut in July
The People’s Bank of China kept its benchmark loan prime rate unchanged on Tuesday after a surprise cut in July, with Beijijng maintaining ultra-loose monetary policies to help support economic growth. The PBOC kept its one-year loan prime rate at 3.35%, as expected, while the five-year LPR, which is used to determine mortgage…
Dollar in holding pattern ahead of FOMC minutes, Powell comments
The U.S. dollar was struggling to make headway against its peers on Monday, though it traded in a tight range as investors awaited fresh catalysts this week that could offer clues on the outlook for U.S. interest rates. Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s July policy meeting and a speech from Chair Jerome Powell…
Japan July inflation likely picked up, boosting case for more BOJ rate hikes: Reuters poll
Japan’s consumer inflation rate likely picked up in July for a third consecutive month, a Reuters poll of 18 economists showed, keeping the central bank on course to consider another rate hike after lifting short-term rates to 0.25% last month. Other data next week is forecast to show that export growth accelerated in…
Asian stocks rise on US inflation cheer, positive data from Japan, China
Asian stocks rose on Thursday as more signs of cooling U.S. inflation ramped up hopes for interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, while a slew of positive economic indicators from the region also aided sentiment. Japanese and Chinese markets were the best performers in the region, after separate data prints showed Japan’s…
Oil prices rise on signs of big US inventory draw, inflation hopes
Oil prices rose in Asian trade on Wednesday, buoyed by industry data showing a bigger-than-expected draw in U.S. stockpiles, while soft inflation data also fueled hopes of deeper interest rate cuts. Sentiment towards oil markets was also on edge as traders awaited a retaliatory strike by Iran against Israel, which could happend as…
Gold prices dip as recession fears ease, set for weekly losses
Gold prices fell in Asian trade on Friday as positive U.S. labor data sparked a recovery in risk appetite and sapped some safe haven demand, putting the yellow metalon course for some weekly losses. Among industrial metals, copper prices also benefited from improved risk appetite, while positive inflation data from top importer China…
Yen slides after BOJ official says no rate hikes if markets volatile
The dollar was firmer on Wednesday, surging as much as 2% against the yen after Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Shinichi Uchida said the central bank won’t raise interest rates when financial markets are unstable. The yen was last down over 1.5% at 146.70 per dollar having touched session lows of 147.50 immediately…
US stocks slump as economic concerns mount; DJIA falls 1,000 points
U.S. stocks fell sharply Monday amid growing concerns over an economic slowdown, with technology stocks hit particularly hard. At 09:40 ET (13:40 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1,070 points, or 2.7%, the S&P 500 dropped 188 points, or 3.5%, and the NASDAQ Composite slumped 810 points, or 4.8%. Slowdown fears batter…
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