EBC Global

The yen was set for its steepest weekly drop in a year due to fast-receding chances of a near-term rate hike. A once-popular currency trade betting against the yen looks set to make a comeback. The strategy turned out to be highly profitable in recent weeks. One-month implied volatility in dollar-ye

Oil prices were little changed in early Asian trade on Friday after falling more than 1% in the previous session, as Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a plan to end the war in Gaza. Under the deal, Israel will partially withdraw from Gaza, and Hamas will free all remaining hostages it ca

Gold perched above $4,010 on Thursday, following a record-breaking rally, as concerns over the US economy and a government shutdown added fresh momentum to a scorching rally. Bullion is on pace for its best annual performance since the 1970s, a decade when rapid inflation and the end of the gold sta

Chinese assets have been back in favour, especially previously unloved equities. Official data show foreign inflows rising across asset classes, a coordinated advance that's only happened in three of the past 10 years. The A50 index has climbed about 11.8% since the start of the year and is hovering

The dollar rose to its strongest levels in six weeks on Wednesday as risks around the US government shutdown intensified. Meanwhile, the euro dropped on France's political impasse. Lawmakers in the lower house forced the resignation of both the previous premiers over budget plans, and were preparing

The yen weakened to a two-month low on Tuesday as attention in Japan turned to who may join the cabinet of fiscal dove Sanae Takaichi after her party leadership victory following Ishiba's resignation. The PM candidate is seen as a proponent of "Abenomics" in favour of loose monetary policy, fiscal s

Wall Street indexes closed up on Monday with the Nasdaq 100 leading gains despite a standoff between Republicans and Democrats over funding raising the prospect of a government shutdown beginning Wednesday. Global equities are likely to extend a rally into the year end given a resilient US economy,

The Swiss franc strengthened on Monday as the growing risk US government shutdown weighed down the dollar. Trump is meeting with congressional leaders at the White House to address the issue before deadline. The SNB held its benchmark interest rate at zero on Thursday, the lowest among major central

Oil prices edged up on Friday, on track to rise at their steepest rate since early June as Ukraine's attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure had let to restriction of fuel exports and close to cutting crude output. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday the country would in

The yen strengthened a bit in early trading on Thursday after minutes of the BOJ's July policy meeting showed some board members called for resuming interest rate hikes in the future. Markets see a roughly 50% chance of a rate hike at the central bank's October meeting, when the board will also rele

US stocks has been on a record-breaking stretch, led by gains in technology shares following Fed's latest decision. Policymakers will cut interest rates by as much as 1.5 ppts by the end of next year, said CitiBank. Nvidia will invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI as the AI lab sets out to build hund

Gold retreated from its record peak on Wednesday on profit-taking. Gold ETFTs saw accelerating inflows, with holdings expanding at the fastest pace in more than three years on Friday. Silver, which also dropped following a yearly gain of more than 50%, could receive support from bullish options trad

The Canadian dollar weakened to a one-week low on Tuesday, with the currency giving back much of the previous week's gains ahead of a speech by BOC Governor Macklem. The BOC cut its policy rate by 25 bps as expected last week citing a weaker economy and less upside risk to inflation as reasons for i