Natural gas prices remained at elevated levels as demand continues rising and as the cooling season starts. Prices for June delivery rose to $9.4 per million British thermal units, which means that they have risen by over 20% this month. This price has risen sharply because of the demand and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. Analysts believe that prices could keep rising if the hot weather arrives and air conditioners are switched on before gas is injected into storage facilities ahead of winter. Data published on Wednesday showed that inventories in the US was 15% lower than the five-year average.
Global stocks rose even after the hawkish minutes by the Federal Reserve. In Europe, the DAX and CAC 40 indices rose by 0.35% while in the US, futures tied to the Dow Jones and S&P 500 rose by 0.25%. In its minutes, the Fed said that it will embrace a restrictive policy to fight inflation. They noted that they will increase interest rates by 0.50% several times this year. It will also continue start to reduce its balance sheet as it tries to engineer a soft landing. This is a situation where it brings inflation down without causing a recession.
Stocks are also rising as investors focus on the ongoing earnings season. Nvidia was one of the biggest movers after the company published weak quarterly results. The stock dropped by more than 6% after it warned about growth of its data center and gaming business. The earnings season will continue today as companies like Movado, Manchester United, Lions Gate, VMWare, FarFetch, Dollar General, and Macy’s expected to publish their results.
XNG/USD
The XNGUSD pair has been in a strong upward trend as natural gas demand continues. The pair rose to a high of 9.45, which was above the highest point this year. It moved above the 25-day and 50-day moving averages while the MACD has moved above the neutral level. The Commodity Channel Index (CCI) has also moved above the overbought level. The pair will likely keep rising as bulls target the key resistance level at 9.45.
EUR/USD
The EURUSD pair rose to a high of 1.0718 as investors reacted to the latest Fed minutes. It rose to a high of 1.0718, which was the highest level this week. The pair is trading close to the upper side of the Bollinger Bands. At the same time, the Relative Strength Index has moved slightly below the overbought level. The MACD has moved above the neutral level. The pair will likely keep rising during the American session.
ETH/USD
The ETHUSD pair made a bearish breakout after spending weeks in a consolidation phase. As it dropped, the pair moved below the lower side of the bearish pennant pattern. The pair has moved below the 25-day and 50-day moving averages. At the same time, the MACD and the Relative Strength Index (RSI) have all dropped. Therefore, the pair will likely keep falling in the near term.
General Risk Warning for FX & CFD Trading. FX & CFDs are leveraged products. Trading in FX & CFDs related to foreign exchange, commodities, financial indices and other underlying variables, carry a high level of risk and can result in the loss of all of your investment. As such, FX & CFDs may not be appropriate for all investors. You should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. Before deciding to trade, you should become aware of all the risks associated with FX & CFD trading, and seek advice from an independent and suitably licensed financial advisor. Under no circumstances shall we have any liability to any person or entity for (a) any loss or damage in whole or part caused by, resulting from, or relating to any transactions related to FX or CFDs or (b) any direct, indirect, special, consequential or incidental damages whatsoever.
Recommended Content
Editors’ Picks
EUR/USD fluctuates in daily range above 1.0600
EUR/USD struggles to gather directional momentum and continues to fluctuate above 1.0600 on Tuesday. The modest improvement seen in risk mood limits the US Dollar's gains as investors await Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's speech.
GBP/USD stabilizes near 1.2450 ahead of Powell speech
GBP/USD holds steady at around 1.2450 after recovering from the multi-month low it touched near 1.2400 in the European morning. The USD struggles to gather strength after disappointing housing data. Market focus shifts to Fed Chairman Powell's appearance.
Gold retreats to $2,370 as US yields push higher
Gold stages a correction on Tuesday and fluctuates in negative territory near $2,370 following Monday's upsurge. The benchmark 10-year US Treasury bond yield continues to push higher above 4.6% and makes it difficult for XAU/USD to gain traction.
XRP struggles below $0.50 resistance as SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit likely to enter final pretrial conference
XRP is struggling with resistance at $0.50 as Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are gearing up for the final pretrial conference on Tuesday at a New York court.
US outperformance continues
The economic divergence between the US and the rest of the world has become increasingly pronounced. The latest US inflation prints highlight that underlying inflation pressures seemingly remain stickier than in most other parts of the world.