Stocks began 2026 on a positive note in as investors braced for a year set to test the AI-led rally. Markets in Japan and China were closed while others returned from the New Year festivities. Oil prices edged up after last year posting their biggest annual loss since 2020, as Ukrainian drones targe

Nvidia dropped on Tuesday after Intel said it had completed a $5 billion private share sale to the chip designer. Nvidia became the world's first $5 trillion company in October. Trump said earlier this month that Nvidia would be allowed to ship its H200 AI chips to "approved customers" in China and

​The dollar held steady on Wednesday but was headed for its biggest annual drop since 2017 as interest rate cuts, fiscal worries and trade policies under Trump deter bulls in 2025. Many of those worries are likely to remain in 2026, suggesting the dollar's dire performance could extend and underpin

Precious metals gained ground on Tuesday following yesterday's plunge. The gold-silver ratio has narrowed from over 100 in April to under 70, signalling risk appetite on the rise. The value of China's silver fund plunged by its maximum daily limit of 10% on Thursday, ending a frenzied bull run that

The yen recovered some ground on Monday. The bearish chorus on the yen is growing louder after the BOJ's latest meeting reinforcing views that there's no quick fix for its structural weakness. Wall Street strategists see the yen weakening to 160 per dollar or beyond by the end of 2026, driven by sti

The yuan eased on Thursday in a holiday-shortened week after data showing strong growth in the world's largest economy failed to shift sentiment on a currency under pressure from expectations of Fed interest rate cuts next year. Options pricing has also turned more negative. So-called risk reversals

Gold surged to break above the psychological milestone of $4,500 an ounce on Wednesday for the first time as safe-haven demand and expectations of rate cuts kept bullion a favoured asset. Overall, JP Morgan Global Research is forecasting prices to average $5,055 by Q1 2026, rising toward $5,400 by t

The pound rose on Monday, building on gains made last week after the BOE delivered a widely expected rate cut, but suggested that the bar for further declines was high. Britain's economy grew by 0.1% in Q3, in line with the office's initial estimate. Money markets show there will be at least one rat

The yen languished around its 11-month trough on Monday, after BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda stuck to his usual cautious rhetoric following an interest rate hike last week. Japan's top currency diplomat, Atsushi Mimura, said on authorities will take "appropriate" action against excessive exchange-rate mov

Oil prices were set to close lower for a second straight week, as rising prospects of a Russia-Ukraine peace deal offset concerns over supply disruptions from a blockade of Venezuelan oil tankers. Putin warned Wednesday that Moscow will seek to extend its gains in Ukraine if Kyiv and its Western all

Bullion was unchanged on Thursday after jobs report showed the unemployment rate rose last month from September, reinforcing bets of rate cuts by the Fed and reining in Treasury yields. Gold has made its biggest jump since the 1979 oil crisis in 2025, a performance which might previously fan fears o

The dollar was steady on Wednesday and near its lowest since the start of October after data showed the labour market remained soft, leaving traders on edge about when the next rate cut from the Fed. While the US added 64,000 jobs in November, surpassing an estimate, the unemployment rate was at 4.6

The Dow and S&P 500 posted record closing highs overnight, while the dollar and Treasury yields extended declines from the day before, when the Fed gave a less hawkish outlook than expected. Fed Chair Powell sounded balanced at a press conference, saying he did not "think a rate hike is anyone's