Western Europe

Wayne Cole gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. The week has started with a mixed bag. While European and Wall Street futures barely moved, Asian shares were led higher by tech. Semiconductor stocks helped the Nikkei rise by 2%, and?South Korea?s Kospi rose around 3% to 6,900. Goldman Sachs has predicted a 75% increase in the Kospi, but this is a call that's been made for years. The fact that the U.S. has a holiday on Monday might make it easier to buy tech shares without fear of Wall Street crashing everything....

Treasury yields and the dollar rose, while stocks fell ?on Friday after stronger-than-expected U.S. job growth data boosted bets on a September interest rate hike by the Federal ?Reserve. The three major U.S. stock indexes all ended the day lower, in a widespread selloff before a 'three-day holiday weekend. Global stock index also declined. The nonfarm payrolls increased by 162,000 positions last month, following a 21,000-job increase that was upwardly revised in July. The economists polled predicted an increase of 56,000. This was after the previously reported decline of 23,000 jobs in July. The unemployment rate remained unchanged. The yield...

The world's shares tipped higher on Friday ahead of U.S. employment data, while the bond market received some much-needed relief after a Federal Reserve official reduced expectations for rate hikes and drove down the dollar. The dollar's decline had run its course, as the normal pre-payrolls patterns?played themselves out. But it left the Japanese yen poised for a weekly increase of nearly 2,5% -- its highest since late July when Japan and the United States?joined forces. The yen has seen its best weekly rise since late July, when Japan and the?U.S. conducted a rare joint effort to stop a downward...

As tensions between the U.S. and Iran escalated, oil prices rose on Friday. They are now heading towards their steepest weekly gains since mid-July. Brent crude futures rose by 54 cents or 0.6% to $96.06 per barrel at 0100 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude crude futures gained 80 cents or 0.9% to $92.10. Brent and WTI both saw weekly gains of 7.6%, while WTI gained 10.4%, the biggest since the week ending July 20. The U.S. attacks on Iran this week, which killed and injured dozens of civilians including Iranians, were the most violent clashes that have occurred between...

Stella Qiu gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. Christopher Waller, the U.S. Federal Reserve governor, urged overnight markets to "give deflation a shot" while?global bonds yields flew. The markets have now reverted to pricing this month's interest rates decision as a coin flip, deciding whether the Fed will?stay?pat or raises rates for the first three years. You can consider the job done. Then he suggested that the non-farm payrolls for August, which is due in the afternoon, was not the data you were looking for. The August CPI report due next week...

The price of oil rose on Friday, and is on track to be the highest weekly gain since mid July. Rising tensions and renewed U.S. - Iran hostilities have heightened concerns about Middle - East supply risks. Brent 'crude futures increased 15?cents or 0.2% to $95.67 a barge at 0100 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures were up by 26 cents or 0.3% at $91.56. Brent was up 7.1% on a weekly basis and WTI 9.8%, the biggest gains since the week ending July 20. The U.S. attack this week, which killed and wounded dozens of people, including Iranians...

Bond yields fell on Thursday, as Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller's comments signaled a willingness for the Fed to be patient in raising interest rates. Waller said in remarks at a NEXT Newsmaker event that if upcoming data?confirmed?inflation pressures were cooling off, he was inclined to argue for keeping interest rates steady at the next policy meeting of the U.S. central bank. In remarks for a NEXT Newsmaker, Waller said that if upcoming data 'confirmed' a cooling of inflation pressures, he would be inclined to advocate keeping interest rates constant at the next meeting of the U.S. Central Bank. After...

The price of oil rose Thursday following a?U.S. The strikes against Iran and the renewed threats by?Israeli?against Tehran have rekindled concerns over disruptions in Middle East supply. Brent crude futures were up 59c, or 0.62% at $96.22 a bar by 1327 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 78c, or 0.86% to $91.79. Both contracts were on track to reach their fourth consecutive day of gains. They also hit six-week highs in the earlier session. Iran's health minister reported that 18 people died and 108 were injured in the U.S. airstrikes across Iran on Tuesday night. According to the...

The Japanese yen rose sharply on Wednesday against the U.S. Dollar after retracing approximately half of the gains made at the end July following a rare, joint intervention between the U.S. The motive for the intervention was not immediately apparent. The yen had fallen to a 40-year-low of 163.98 per dollar prior to the intervention. It rose as high as 155.21, before giving up some of its gains. The yen last rose 0.79% to 158.92 dollars. Chris Scicluna is the head of Daiwa Capital Markets Europe's economic research. He said: "It would be convenient for the U.S. to conduct a...

Uganda named its blended crude grade "Pearl Sweet" on Wednesday, a major step in preparation for the planned commercial oil production by the East African nation at the end of this year. Uganda discovered commercial crude reserves in the Albertine Rift basin along its border with Democratic Republic of Congo two decades ago. The lack of infrastructure has repeatedly delayed commercial production, as have disagreements between government officials and international oil companies about development plans. The name was revealed by President Yoweri Mueveni at a ceremony held in the Kikuube District, located about 250 km (155 mi) west of Kampala....

The world stock market fell on Wednesday as fresh U.S. strikes on Iran pushed oil prices up to a five-week high, fueling inflation fears and extending the global bond saleoff. The U.S. attacked Iranian military targets near Strait of Hormuz while Tehran claimed it had targeted U.S. resources across the region. This was the largest exchange of fire for weeks. Brent crude futures rose 0.1% to $94.87 per barrel on fears of further disruptions in energy supplies. Kiran Ganesh is a multi-assets strategist at UBS Global Wealth Management. She said that the recent rise in energy prices had put further...

The dollar reached a two-week peak on Wednesday, as investors flocked to the U.S. dollar amid growing concerns over the impact of the energy crisis and diverging monetary policies?across major economies. After the largest exchange of fire for weeks, the U.S. and Iran were back in a war-like situation on Wednesday. The dollar tends to gain from higher oil costs because the U.S. is less vulnerable to energy shocks compared to other major economies. This attracts demand to the detriment of currencies like the euro and the yen. The Federal Reserve faces a growing threat of tightening policy in 2027,...

The dollar was weaker on Monday and the prospects of shortages outside the U.S. boosted the price of copper. The traders said that the U.S. holiday meant volumes would be muted and that they were focusing on copper and zinc. The benchmark copper price on the London Metal Exchange was 0.2% higher, at $14.443 per metric ton. It reached $14,467 earlier in trade, its highest level since January's all-time high of $14,527.50. Since President Donald Trump proposed import tariffs last February, traders and producers have shipped large amounts of copper to the U.S. Comex copper stock levels are at a...

Volkswagen announced on Monday a preliminary agreement that will see one of its German plants switch over to defense production. This is a major step in the automaker’s effort to restructure factories struggling to compete against lower-cost Chinese competitors. The deal could be a blueprint for other Volkswagen plants facing an uncertain future, as Europe's biggest carmaker embarks upon its largest ever restructuring in order to revive margins while combating chronic overcapacity on its stagnant European markets. Volkswagen, under the initial terms of this deal, will sell its Osnabrueck factory to Israel's Aurelius Capital, and Volkswagen's own state of Lower...

Volkswagen shares reached a?11-week peak after the supervisory board of Europe's biggest automaker late Thursday struck?an ambitious turn around agreement that focused on sweeping cuts in jobs and avoided a conflict between major stakeholders. The agreement on the largest restructuring in the group’s 89-year-old history includes another 50,000 job reductions, bringing the agreed total to 100,000. It also leaves the future of four German plants open. Volkswagen is also under pressure, along with most of its European counterparts, from the 'painful tariffs' in the United States and the falling sales in China, a former cash cow, as well as aggressive...

A record low smelter treatment term, a year of underperformance by mines and a scramble to get metal at the London Metal Exchange. If you think this is the description of the copper markets, then think again. Zinc is under pressure now, even though copper may face a structural shortage in the future. LME zinc for three months hit a four-year-high of $3,990 per ton on Monday. LME stocks have remained low throughout the year. The registered inventory is 100,525?tons but nearly a third are in the form?cancelled warrants? awaiting physical loading-out. The time-spreads will be emphasized in a similar...

Four sources said that the top?global aluminum producers offered Japanese buyers a premium of $310-$325 per metric tonne for primary metal shipments in October and December, down by 18%-22% on the current quarter. Japan is the largest importer of light metals, and the premiums it agrees to each quarter for primary metal shipments over the London Metal Exchange cash price are the benchmarks in the region. Japanese buyers had agreed to pay a premium of $395 per ton for the period July-September The increase was between 12% and 13% compared to the previous quarter. A source from a Japanese trading...

BHP's commercial officer Rag Udd will step down by the end of January in order to pursue a career outside the company. This was revealed in a memo sent out on Tuesday. The miner is now left with a difficult role -- negotiating iron-ore deals with China. Some analysts and investors had considered Udd as a candidate for the "top job" at BHP. Brandon Craig, who started in July, was given the position. According to the memo, Udd will have been working at BHP in Singapore for 30 years by the time he leaves. Udd?was responsible for BHP's negotiation with...

IG Metall - Germany's largest union - warned on Monday that it would resist any attempts by Volkswagen to undo a restructuring package previously agreed. However, the union did not threaten strikes in advance of a critical board meeting scheduled for the end of this week. Since July, Volkswagen's management has been at odds with its unions over what could be the biggest overhaul of the automaker to date. This includes?plant closings, the carving-out and 50,000 more layoffs. It would be less than two-years after the most recent package, which was reached following months of intense talks and warning strikes,...

Market participants were waiting for the remarks of Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole Symposium, hoping to gain insight into the central banks future interest rate policy. By 0652 GMT, spot gold had not changed much from $4,603,91 per ounce. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. gold futures fell 0.1% to $4 657.10. Matt Simpson, senior analyst at StoneX, stated that the case for Warsh leaning hawkish was greater than for him to not do so. This could lead to gold...

The price of gold fell on Friday, as investors waited for the remarks made by Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh at a Jackson Hole symposium. Gold spot fell 0.5%, to $4,580.19 an ounce at 0438 GMT. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.7% to $4.632.40. Matt Simpson, senior analyst at StoneX, stated that the case for Warsh leaning hawkish was greater than "the case against him". This could lead to a further decline in gold from its cycle highs, Matt Simpson...

The gold?prices eased Wednesday as they were on track to end a three-session winning streak. However, the focus now shifts to the U.S. Inflation data that will be released later in the afternoon for any indications on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy. Spot gold dropped 0.8% by 1114 GMT to $4,618.03 an ounce, after prices rose to their highest level since May 14, on Tuesday, following the U.S. Treasury Department?s recent bond buyback announcement. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.4% to $4673.90. Nikos Tzabouras is a senior market analyst at Jefferies owned Tradu.com. He said that gold prices were subdued...

London's zinc market is still a hazardous place for bears. Metal that was expected to drop in price this year has risen. The London Metal Exchange's (LME) 3-month zinc reached a new four-year high of $3,858 a metric ton on Tuesday morning. The relentless rally has been accompanied by an abrupt contraction of the LME time spreads. This is particularly worrying for holders of zinc short positions. The premium for cash Metal?over a three-month delivery The price of a ton has dropped to $131, which is a significant drop from last October's record high of $323. The tightening market this...

Gold prices eased Tuesday, after reaching a high of more than three months earlier in the session. Profit-taking and an 'a?firmer dollar? curbed gains before U.S. Inflation data and comments from Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh. After reaching its highest level since the 14th of May, spot gold fell 0.4% to $4,634.76 an ounce at 0937 GMT. U.S. Gold futures fell 0.2% to $4689.70. Gold's movement today is due to profit-taking, as the dollar has recovered some of the losses from last week that were caused by the buyback announcement," Saxo Bank's Ole Hansen explained. He was referring to U.S....