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Gregor Stuart Hunter gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. Oil is back in the spotlight and equity markets are struggling to find a footing after the selloff this week triggered by new?blows against the ceasefire?in?the Middle East. U.S. has?launched a new strike against multiple targets within Iran. President Donald Trump has promised even more attacks in the event of no peace agreement. Brent crude rose by 1.7% to $94.64 on Friday after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran announced that it had targeted U.S. bases in Kuwait and Bahrain and threatened?to...

What's important in U.S. and Global Markets Today By Mike Dolan, Editor at Large, Finance and Markets It's unnerving that the relapse of U.S. Tech stocks on Tuesday occurred as oil prices dropped sharply in the same session. This shows how stock market anxiety extends "well beyond" the energy story. The crude?prices on Wednesday were volatile after the U.S. and?Iran exchanged missile strikes overnight, the most alarming direct interaction between the two sides since the fragile ceasefire was established. Below, I will go into more detail. Check out my most recent column about why the stock exchange is becoming more...

Stock market gains are not the real economy but they offer more than just a warm fuzzy feeling for many families. Stock-based compensation for workers may be a factor that helps bind them'more closely' The U.S. economy has remained stable despite a turbulent post-pandemic period of high inflation, rising interest rates and political and trade uncertainty. Many theories have been put forward, ranging from robust corporate and household finances to tax "cuts" and a three-year old AI investment boom. One of the most popular is that the stock market's resilience has boosted the so-called "wealth effect" and kept the consumption...

These are the most popular?stories from the Wall Street Journal. These?stories have not been?verified' and we cannot?guarantee? their?accuracy. Israel and Iran traded missile strikes Monday, after the U.S. brokered a ceasefire in early April. This was their first direct attack since the truce went into effect. - Nvidia is ?teaming up with South Korea's SK Telecom and Naver ?to build gigawatt-scale artificial-intelligence cloud infrastructure in Asia. - Intesa Sanpaolo said ?it has launched a EUR30.66 billion ($35.33 ?billion) unsolicited cash-and-share ?takeover bid for Monte dei Paschi di Siena. Roche has announced that it has signed an exclusive licensing agreement and...

Oil prices dropped on Friday, as traders grew more confident that a renewed conflict between the U.S.A. and Iran is less likely. Brent crude futures fell $2.08 or 2.18% to $92.95 per barrel at 11:37 CST . Brent closed the previous session 2.84% down. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was $89.93 per barrel, down $3.11 or 3.34% after a loss of 3.1% on Thursday. Phil Flynn is a senior analyst with Price Futures Group. He said that the market does not see an escalation of tensions between the parties. Even though we haven't reached a deal, the market seems to...

What is important in the U.S. and international markets today by Mike Dolan Editor-at-Large of Finance and Markets On Wednesday, the?S&P 500 did not achieve its 10th consecutive daily gain and some clouds are forming in the markets. Broadcom, the sixth largest company in the world by market capitalization, has stumbled despite the frenzy surrounding the hot chip sector. Stocks of the chipmaker dropped by more than 13% overnight after a slight miscalculation in sales and revenue estimates. This?reaction is a sign of the high bar that companies have to meet in order to impress the markets during the AI...

Federal Reserve quarterly "dot-plot" rate forecasts could soon lose the last projected rate reduction, the so called easing dot. The plot itself may disappear altogether. Markets would then have to determine if Kevin Warsh was really the inflation-hawk he claimed to be. It might still be a surprise to some investors if he's right. Before his first policy meeting, the new Fed chairman is busy setting up his stall. He consults his staff and gets ready for his first policy session. The guidance he receives on policy direction is not going to be easy. The three-month-long war in Iran and...

The oil prices fell 'on Thursday' as the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement boosted expectations for a wider deal to end the U.S./Israeli war against 'Iran'. Meanwhile, U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution to limit President Donald Trump's military powers. Brent futures fell 67 cents or 0.69% to $97.14 a barge by 0015 GMT. U.S. West Texas intermediate CLc1 crude dropped 62 cents or?0.65% to $95.4. After renewed Middle East hostilities, including Iranian attacks against Kuwait and U.S. military strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, both benchmarks gained about 2%. The Republican-led House in the U.S. approved a Resolution on Wednesday...

Wild swings in stock prices could indicate a market that is in its final stages of a speculative frenzy. Wall Street's fear gauge is dozing. It may take some good news to get it moving again. The AI boom is accelerating and attracting more and more tech and chip names from around the world. Even companies with a market cap of more than $200 billion have seen a 20% to 30% one-day increase. Dell's stock soared by 32% after its disastrous results on Friday. Hewlett Packard Enterprise soared 28% Tuesday after its own earnings report. Marvell Technology gained 25 percent...

Tom Westbrook gives us a look at what the markets will be like tomorrow in Europe and globally. AI shares drove Asian equity markets to new records on Wednesday, despite fresh hostilities across the Middle East. Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia and AI kingmaker, has announced that Marvell Technology, a chipmaker with a superhero-sounding name is the next trillion dollar company. This announcement sent its stock price higher than 30%. Market cap of $254bn is far from $1trillion, but peers are closing the gap at a rapid pace. In the past year, SK Hynix and Micron had barely $100...

What is important in the U.S. and international markets today by Mike Dolan Editor-at-Large of Finance and Markets The 'global markets' appeared to be calm early on Tuesday. However, the latest AI twist and another set of confusing signals regarding the Iran conflict were hidden. Anthropic, an AI startup, stole the show Monday when it announced that it had confidentially 'filed' for an IPO. It seemed to beat rival OpenAI and catch the slipstream of SpaceX IPO which is expected in this upcoming month. Below, I'll get into this and more. Check out my most recent column about how the...

Iran's energy boom may mask a larger inflation concern. AI prices are rising, and this boom will outlast any Gulf hiatus. Not least the major central banks are watching the crude price fluctuations around the Iran conflict to see how it will affect the cost of living. The AI investment frenzy has also been fueling a flurry of factory activity, a rise in construction, and a possible increase in prices. The massive business investment expenditure is expected to reach trillions of dollars in the future. Already, it is affecting company earnings, stock prices and projections, as well the aggregate GDP....

Gold prices fell on Friday, and were "on track" to make a loss for the week. This was due to concerns about inflation and possible interest rate increases by the U.S. Federal Reserve. As of 0442 GMT spot gold was down by 0.5%, at $4,193.58 an ounce. This was set to be a loss of 3.1% for the week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery rose 2.5% to $ 4,215.30. Gold dropped to a more-than-six month low on Thursday, before closing at $4,219.69 as U.S. president Donald Trump canceled planned military strikes?on Iran, and signalled a forthcoming peace deal. Edward...

Gold prices fell on Friday, and were on track to lose a significant amount of money for the week. This was due to concerns about inflation and possible interest rate increases by the U.S. Federal Reserve. As of 0252 GMT the spot gold price was down 0.5%, at $4,191.17 an ounce. This was a loss of 3.2% for the week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery rose 2.4% to $ 4,212.70. Gold fell to a six-month low before closing at $4,219.69 on Thursday, after U.S. president Donald?Trump cancelled planned military strikes against Iran and announced an imminent peace agreement. Edward...

Investors covered their short positions on Thursday and gold prices rose, rebounding from the?a six-month low. However, concerns about higher inflation rates in the U.S. and rising interest rates have limited gains. Gold spot rose 0.6%, to $4.097.01 an ounce at 836 GMT. It had fallen earlier in the session to its lowest level since November 21, U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery were down 0.4% to $4,118. Ross Norman, an independent analyst, said that gold is "clearly" oversold right now. It remains to be determined whether or not this is a real recovery of the metal as such or...

Investors?bought? the metal at a bargain price on Thursday as they awaited a crucial U.S. Inflation Report that could influence Federal Reserve policy. Gold spot rose 0.7% by 0741 GMT to $4,103.74 an ounce, after having fallen as low as $4,022.09 per ounce on November 21, earlier in the day. U.S. gold futures for August were down 0.2% to $4,125.10. Matt Simpson, senior analyst at StoneX, said: "With prices hurtling toward $4,000, there's an obvious level of support which could encourage bears to make a quick profit, or tempt battered bulls off the sidelines." The U.S. Dollar Index failed to...

The government is seeking input from the industry regarding a new steel tariff regime. This comes after the users of metals warned that the scheme would be very costly for their businesses. As other countries in the European Union and Britain, they are concerned about the "dumping" high subsidised steel from countries like China. In March, Britain proposed a reduction in its tariff-free allowance for imported steel, and a doubling of the tariff on imports that exceeded this allowance. This new trade measure, which is due to take effect on July 1, was warmly welcomed by British steel producers. The...

Three sources with knowledge of the matter said that Sumitomo Corp provided financing to buyers of its 54% stake in Madagascar’s Ambatovy Nickel operation. This helped the company exit the losing project. Three sources familiar with the matter said that Sumitomo Corp, which invested $3 billion over 20 years in Ambatovy and has incurred $2.5 billion cumulative losses, provided financing to buyers of its 54% stake in Madagascar's Ambatovy nickel operation, smoothing their exit from the loss-making project. Sumitomo funded this transaction, while still retaining certain nickel offtake rights. "It needed someone to solve the problem for them," said one...

Gold prices dropped on Friday and were set to?have a weekly loss? as tensions in Middle?East dampened hopes for a U.S. - Iran peace deal amid fears of rising inflation and rate hikes. As of 0718 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.3%, at $4,461.28 an ounce. It has dropped about 1.6% this week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery fell by 0.4% to $4487.90. Israel has said that it will not withdraw its troops from Lebanon, despite the rejection of a ceasefire by Hezbollah's?militia. This undermines President Donald Trump’s efforts to stop fighting in Lebanon to reach a peace...

Gold prices dropped on Friday and were set to?for an overall loss? as tensions in Middle 'East tempered?hopes of a U.S. - Iran peace deal amid fears about rising inflation and rate hikes. As of 0548 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.6%, at $4,445.51 an ounce. The price of gold has dropped about 2% in the last week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery fell by 0.7% to $4471.70. Israel has said that it will not withdraw its troops from Lebanon, despite the rejection of a ceasefire by Hezbollah's?militia. This undermines President Donald Trump’s efforts to stop fighting in...

Gold prices dropped on Friday and were set to suffer a weekly loss as tensions in the Middle East dampened expectations for a U.S. Iran peace deal, amid fears of rising inflation rates and interest rate hikes. As of 0402 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.7%, at $4,442.94 an ounce. It is down about 2% this week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery?fell by 0.8% to $4469.10. Hezbollah, a militia backed by Iran, rejected a ceasefire in Lebanon. Israel also said it would not withdraw its troops from Lebanon. This undermined the efforts of U.S. president Donald Trump to...

Gold prices dropped on Friday and were set to suffer a weekly loss as tensions in the Middle East tempered hopes of a U.S. Iran peace deal, amid fears about rising inflation rates and interest rate hikes. As of 0225 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.5%, at $4,452.20 an ounce. It is down about 1.8% this week. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery fell?0.6% at $4,478.50. Hezbollah, a militia backed by Iran, rejected a ceasefire in Lebanon. Israel also said it would not withdraw its troops from Lebanon. This undermined the efforts of U.S. president Donald Trump to stop...

Gold prices rose more than 1% on Thursday, as oil prices fell due to optimism about a possible end to the Iran Conflict. This led to a fall in bond yields and a pressure on the dollar. As of 11:50 am EDT (1550GMT), spot gold was up by 1% to $4,474.07 an ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery gained 0.8%, to $4$4,501.90. Independent metals trader Tai Wong says that reports of a ceasefire agreement between?Israel? and Lebanon? have pushed the dollar and bond yields up, allowing gold to hold above?the 200-day moving aver?, which is an important indicator. Israel...

Gold prices rose more than 1% on Thursday, as oil prices fell due to optimism about a possible end to the Iran Conflict. This led to a fall in bond yields and pressured the dollar. As of 9:05 am EDT (1305 GMT), spot gold was up by 1.7% to $4,505.35 an ounce. U.S. Gold futures for August delivered gained 1.5%, to $4,532.80. The dollar and bond yields have been pushed up by reports of a?deal for a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, according to independent metals trader Tai Wong. This has helped gold hold just above the 200-day moving averge....