Wall Street stalls near record highs

Chris Beauchamp IG

Wall Street continues to trade in record highs but is losing momentum ahead of next week's Fed meeting, says Axel Rudolph, Senior Technical Analyst at investing and trading platform IG.

US producer prices unexpectedly decline

The UK economy stagnated in July as GDP flatlined, with a 0.9% drop in industrial output and broad weakness in manufacturing offset by modest gains in services and construction. Sterling briefly slipped against the dollar on the news, while the FTSE 100 defied the downbeat data, remaining close to record highs thanks to strength in insurance and mining stocks. The picture was similar in the US where Wall Street flirted with record highs without much conviction as US consumer sentiment weakened.

Crude Oil price rallies

WTI crude oil jumped over 1.5% to $63.5 a barrel after a major Ukrainian drone strike disrupted Russia’s Primorsk port operations, intensifying supply concerns despite rising global output projections and expectations of Fed rate cuts supporting demand. Gold and especially silver prices rallied as well, the former remaining close to this week's $3,674 all-time high and the latter reaching $42.46, a level last seen in September 2011.

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Chris Beauchamp

EUR/USD stays defensive below 1.1900 as USD recovers

EUR/USD trades in negative territory for the third consecutive day, below 1.1900 in the European session on Thursday. A modest rebound in the US Dollar is weighing on the pair, despite an upbeat market mood. Traders keep an eye on the US weekly Initial Jobless Claims data for further trading impetus.

GBP/USD holds above 1.3600 after UK data dump

\GBP/USD moves little while holding above 1.3600 in the European session on Thursday, following the release of the UK Q4 preliminary GDP, which showed a 0.1% growth against a 0.2% increase expected. The UK industrial sector activity deteriorated in Decembert, keeping the downward pressure intact on the Pound Sterling.

Gold sticks to modest intraday losses as reduced March Fed rate cut bets underpin USD

Gold languishes near the lower end of its daily range heading into the European session on Thursday. The precious metal, however, lacks follow-through selling amid mixed cues and currently trades above the $5,050 level, well within striking distance of a nearly two-week low touched the previous day.

Cardano eyes short-term rebound as derivatives sentiment improves

Cardano (ADA) is trading at $0.257 at the time of writing on Thursday, after slipping more than 4% so far this week. Derivatives sentiment improves as ADA’s funding rates turn positive alongside rising long bets among traders.

A tale of two labour markets: Headline strength masks underlying weakness

Undoubtedly, yesterday’s delayed US January jobs report delivered a strong headline – one that surpassed most estimates. However, optimism quickly faded amid sobering benchmark revisions.

Sonic Labs’ vertical integration fuels recovery in S token

Sonic, previously Fantom (FTM), is extending its recovery trade at $0.048 at the time of writing, after rebounding by over 12% the previous day. The recovery thesis’ strengths lie in the optimism surrounding Sonic Labs’ Wednesday announcement to shift to a vertically integrated model, aimed at boosting S token utility.