Gold prices reacted positively to the Federal Reserve's decision not to raise interest rates by a full percentage point in July.
First and foremost, the reduction in expectations of future rate hikes due to concerns about a recession in early 2023 drove gold above $1,740 per troy ounce. The expectations of lower rates in 2023 also weakened the US dollar, as...
Following the Federal Reserve meeting, which delivered a back-to-back 75-basis-point rate hike to 2.25-2.5% ( USINTR ), S&P 500 index broke above 4,000 points, marking a 2.6% daily gain, as market expectations pointed to a halt in rate hikes at the end of the year, and a rate cut in the first half of next year.
A window for a "bear market rally" in the S&P 500...
USD/HUF technical analysis
The worst-performing currency today is the Hungarian forint, down by more than 1% on the day against the USD ( USD/HUF ), as Russian gas disruptions fuelled selling pressures on Central Eastern European currencies.
The latest candlesticks analysis provides a strong bullish signal generated by the three white soldiers pattern. This...
The price of natural gas has been going up and down like a roller coaster over the past month.
After suffering a severe 45% drop between June 8 and early July, US Henry Hub prices have risen nearly 80% since July 7, recouping all the losses.
What's going on in the natural gas market?
Russia is squeezing gas supplies to Europe via the NordStream (NS1)...
The Russell 2000 's drawdown from its peak has been important (-26%), but not as severe as those seen during the dot-com bubble in 2002, the 2008 financial crisis, and Covid-19 at the start of 2020, when the US small-cap index plummeted by more than 40%.
To reverse the current downtrend of the Russell 2000 , the underlying causes must also be reversed, which...
The UK July PMIs show a slowing in the rate of expansion in both the service and manufacturing sectors. The UK Services PMI Business Activity Index fell to 53.3 in July, down from 54.3 in June, hitting a 17-month low. The manufacturing PMI in the United Kingdom fell to 52.2 from 54.3 in June, reaching a 25-month low.
Capacity constraints due to a lack of...
The European Central Bank raised interest rates by half a percentage point at its July 2022 meeting, the first hike in eleven years, terminating eight years of negative rates and speeding up efforts to return to the medium-term inflation objective of 2%. The ECB also hinted that it will keep raising interest rates at its next meetings, using a data-dependent...
Ten years after rescuing the euro with the iconic "Whatever it takes", Mario Draghi resigns as Italian Prime Minister, as the political parties that formed his majority no longer backed him.
The uncertainty surrounding the upcoming general election reigns supreme, and the political crisis in Italy risks putting further downward pressure on the Italian FTSE MIB (...
During its July meeting, the Bank of Japan (BoJ) voted 8-1 to keep its key short-term interest rate ( JPINTR ) at -0.1% and 10-year bond yields ( JP10Y ) around 0%.
However, it lowered its GDP growth forecast for 2022 from 2.9% in April to 2.4%, mentioning slowing global growth and problems with the supply chain caused by the long war in Ukraine. On top of that,...
Henry Hub ( US natural gas ) prices have fallen 25% from their peak of $9.64 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) hit in June, as the fire at Freeport LNG’s natural gas liquefaction plant reduced U.S. export capacity by an estimated 2.0 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) or approximately 15% of annual volumes.
The major driver behind the spectacular rise in...
The US dollar shows no signs of rebound following a three-day losing streak, with EUR/USD breaking above the 1.02 barrier yesterday and surging to 1.024 as of this writing, boosted by rising speculation of a half-percentage point hike at tomorrow’s ECB meeting.
The case for a hawkish half-point increase has gathered traction over the past hours following...
The dollar index ( DXY ) fell to 106.3 (-0.7% on the day), its lowest level since July 6th, as traders reduced expectations for a full percentage point rate rise by the Federal Reserve next week and risk appetite returned.
Fed interest rate futures now price in a 75-basis-point-hike in the next FOMC meeting with a 67% probability, according to the latest CME...
The latest Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) minutes, which opened the door to more interest rate hikes, may provide only marginal support to the Australian dollar when compared to the US dollar ( AUD/USD ).
Stronger global economic growth, a Chinese industrial recovery, more risk appetite among investors, and widespread gains in commodity prices are required for...
Gold prices enjoyed a good start to the week, as investors scaled back their expectations for a massive Fed rate hike by a full percentage point in July, and after China announced further liquidity stimulus to cope with rising Covid-19 cases and housing debt problems.
The latest economic events have all helped to alleviate worries of an imminent recession in the...
Gold is seeking to establish support at the psychological $1,700/oz level, the lowest price since August 2021.
It is the fifth consecutive week that bullion has been in the negative, with prices now 17% down from their February highs.
The latest slump in the yellow metal was exacerbated by market repricing on Federal Reserve interest rate rises, as the U.S....
The euro-dollar pair ( EUR/USD ) achieved parity today, an occurrence not seen in nearly two decades (November 2002), as a fresh energy crisis in Europe threatens the onset of a recession.
It's been a rough year for the euro, losing nearly 11% of its value versus the dollar since January and 15% over the last 12 months.
The short-term (2-year) bond yields...
US NATURAL GAS prices plunged by 13% to $5.5/MMBtu, the lowest level since March, as a result of investors' unfavourable reactions to recent EIA data that revealed a larger-than-expected storage build.
Last week, utilities in the United States added 82 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas to storage, well beyond analysts' projections of 74 bcf.
NATURAL GAS ...
The euro-Swiss franc ( EUR/CHF ) exchange rate is in the spotlight today as the pair returned to hit parity for the second time since early March.
The eurozone's worsening economic outlook continues to push ( EUR/CHF ) lower, and the market appears to be giving more credit to the Swiss National Bank's (SNB) ability to continue rising rates to curb...
