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Putin shakes up oil markets Energy markets were shaken overnight as Russian President Putin directed that payments for Russian natural gas by “unfriendly nations” be paid for in roubles (RUB), giving government officials and the central bank a week to come up with a mechanism. As telegraphed yesterday, Russia also announced the full closure of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s Black Sea terminal because of “storm damage.” The rouble natural gas announcement sent European gas benchmarks 30% hig

24-03-2022 05:54 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street slips

Asian equities mixed after a torrid New York session Overnight, sharply higher energy prices, and a procession of hawkish Federal Reserve officials on the wires, saw the gains of the previous day mostly wiped out, despite yields falling. Energy markets were turbulent overnight as Russian President Putin directed that payments for Russian natural gas by “unfriendly nations” be paid for in roubles, giving government officials and the central bank a week to come up with a mechanism. The S&P 500

24-03-2022 05:48 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Oil surges, lower US yields boost gold

Oil prices soar overnight Russian President Putin shocked the energy markets on Wednesday when he directed that payments for Russian natural gas by “unfriendly nations” must be paid for in roubles. The announcement and the full closure of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s (CPC) pipeline by Russia sent European natural gas prices 30% higher, and also aggressively lifted crude prices, helped by lower official US Crude Inventories.

24-03-2022 05:35 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Currency markets looking for direction

Currency markets remain in a holding pattern Currency markets had another night of quite wide ranges, but ultimately closed once again not far from where they started. The currency space appears to have moved to the sidelines, for now, content to wait and watch for developments elsewhere for its next directional cues.

24-03-2022 05:22 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Oil soars, gold looks for direction

Oil surges amid further supply issues Oil prices are more than 5% higher after Russia confirmed that oil exports via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) will fall by around a million barrels a day for up to two months as a result of storm damage. This comes at a time of significant tightness in the market and could contribute to further increases in the price in the coming weeks. That is of course unless other producers step up and utilise the spare capacity in order to prevent oil prices fr

23-03-2022 12:56 GMT by Craig Erlam

Stocks slip as oil and gas surge

European stocks have posted losses of around 1% on Wednesday, paring some of the gains we've seen over the last couple of weeks.

23-03-2022 12:52 GMT by Edward Moya

Mid-Market Update: Stocks lower as soft landing fantasy seems unlikely, Energy prices jump, Gold rallies, Bitcoin Hovers

US stocks declined as the harsh reality sets in that the Fed most likely won’t be able to navigate a soft landing as geopolitical risks will continue to keep upward pressures on prices and force the Fed into a difficult decision later this year. The Fed will either have to tighten policy so much that it sends the economy into a recession, or it will once again have to flip flop and prevent policy from becoming too restrictive. Wall Street's resilience for risky assets can't handle a flip-flopp

23-03-2022 12:48 GMT by Edward Moya

Euro dips below 1.10 level

The euro has edged lower on Wednesday and is trading just below the 1.10 level, a psychologically important line. A tale of two central banks? The Federal Reserve came out swinging this week, reiterating its pledge to do everything it can to wrestle sizzling inflation back to lower levels. Fed Chair Powell said that inflation was putting the recovery at risk and he was prepared to raise interest rates by 0.50% increments if needed.

23-03-2022 12:43 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Japanese yen steadies

March has been a sea of red for the Japanese yen, as USD/JPY has soared 5.04% this month. The currency is steady on Wednesday, after breaking above the 121 line earlier in the day. Rate differential weighing on yen The yen took a double-punch in the ribs on Tuesday, as USD/JPY jumped 1.14%.

23-03-2022 10:55 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Pound slips as inflation surges

UK inflation outperforms The markets were bracing for inflation to accelerate in February, and the readings were even higher than expected. CPI hit 6.2% YoY, a new 30-year high.

23-03-2022 09:10 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Oil surges, gold eases

Oil prices soar overnight Oil markets are a mess of volatility at the moment, along with my oil data feeds, as Brent crude and WTI endured another day of very choppy trading in a very wide intraday range. Brent crude gave back all its intraday gains, even after API Crude Inventories fell, to finish 1.85% lower at USD 114.50 a barrel.

23-03-2022 04:28 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Asian equities follow Wall Street higher

Asian markets rally The perpetual armies of bullish investors dominated New York overnight, and also key fast-money markets like Japan today, as they wishfully priced there was no more bad news to come from Eastern Europe or the Fed. That sparked an “efficient market pricing” rally that saw New York record some impressive gains, with “value” the winner, over growth.

23-03-2022 04:12 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Equity markets say "I'm back"

I'm feeling like I'm watching constant replays of the Child's Play horror movies at the moment. Chucky the evil doll saying "I'm back" is playing over and over again as equity markets, once again, try pricing that all the bad news is out there.

23-03-2022 03:48 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Oil dips, gold consolidates

Oil slightly pares gains after Monday's surge A 7% surge in oil prices on Monday was always going to be difficult to sustain and today's modest declines are a reflection of that. Whether fueled by the prospect of an EU ban on Russian imports, Chinese lockdowns being less economically restrictive, or the dimming prospects for substantial Saudi output increases; it seems oil traders aren't willing to give up the gains that easy. It's going to be tough for the EU to agree on a ban that isn't phas

22-03-2022 15:13 GMT by Craig Erlam

Investors undeterred

Stock markets are making decent gains on Tuesday, bouncing back quickly from the disappointment late Monday as Fed Chair Powell turned the hawkish dial up a notch. It didn't take long for investors to get over the latest disappointment as they prepared for interest rates rising to around 2% by the end of the year. That's an incredible aggressive tightening cycle and would mean at least one 50 basis point hike at a meeting, something we haven't seen in more than 20 years. Despite recession talk

22-03-2022 14:30 GMT by Craig Erlam

Pound jumps on strong mfg. data

GBP/USD has resumed its upswing after a quiet start to the week. GBP/USD is trading at 1.3261 in the North American session, up 0.75% on the day. It was just one week ago that the pound was in the dumps, falling to the symbolic 1.30 line.

22-03-2022 14:02 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Oil dips, gold lower as risk appetite returns

Oil prices fall ahead of NATO meeting After rallying since the middle of last week, crude prices declined as energy traders await what actions come from this week’s NATO summit. Crude supply shortage concerns were somewhat alleviated after reports that China is buying Russian crude at a big discount. It looks like two key economies, China and India are still buying Russian oil and that will likely put a halt to the recent rebound in prices. The short-term crude demand outlook might need a do

22-03-2022 12:43 GMT by Edward Moya

What Stagflation? Bullard being Bullard, bitcoin rallies

Equity traders are looking at surging global bond yields and are saying, “What, me worry?” The global bond market selloff is not easing at all and that should raise some red flags. Mad Magazine’s Alfred E. Neuman is what many stock traders are starting to look like when they buy every dip. Fed policy is about to become restrictive and commodity market tightness will still remain even if there is a quick resolution to the crisis in Ukraine.

22-03-2022 12:37 GMT by Edward Moya

NZD soars despite drop in confidence

The New Zealand dollar is up sharply on Tuesday. In the North American session, NZD/USD is trading at 0.6943, up 0.83% on the day. NZ consumer sentiment falls sharply Westpac Consumer sentiment slowed for a third straight quarter, and the Q1 release showed a sharp drop, falling from 99.1 to 92.1.

22-03-2022 10:53 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Yen slides on Powell, Kuroda comments

The Japanese yen's downswing is turning into a rout. USD/JPY has climbed a massive 1.16% today and briefly punched across the 121 line earlier in the day. Yen's slide continues The yen has extended its losses in what has become a miserable March for the currency.

22-03-2022 08:45 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

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