European gas prices surge – ING

FXStreet Insights Team FXStreet

European gas prices jumped to the highest level since October 2023 yesterday as unexpected supply disruptions and colder weather forecasts worsened the supply threats in an already tight market, ING's commodity experts Ewa Manthey and Warren Patterson note.

Rise in carbon prices is supporting the upward rally in gas

"TTF front-month futures rose over 6% to close above EUR51/MWh as of yesterday as market participants remained concerned about volatile supplies of liquified natural gas following the recent production issues at some export facilities affecting fuel flows."

"Meanwhile, the heating demand is expected to increase as temperatures are forecasted to drop over the coming days. Additionally, a rise in carbon prices is also supporting the upward rally in gas. Looking at inventories, the European gas storage is now only about 55% full, down from 72% at the same stage last year and below the five-year average of 62%."

Author

FXStreet Insights Team

FXStreet

The FXStreet Insights Team is a group of journalists that handpicks selected market observations published by renowned experts. The content includes notes by commercial as well as additional insights by internal and external analysts.

EUR/USD accelerates losses, focus is on 1.1800

EUR/USD’s selling pressure is gathering pace now, opening the door to a potential test of the key 1.1800 region sooner rather than later. The pair’s pullback comes on the back of marked gains in the US Dollar following US data releases and the publication of the FOMC Minutes later in the day.

GBP/USD turns negative near 1.3540

GBP/USD reverses its initial upside momentum and is now adding to previous declines, revisiting at the same time the 1.3540 region on Wednesday. Cable’s downtick comes on the back of decent gains in the Greenback and easing UK inflation figures, which seem to have reinforced the case for a BoE rate cut in March.

Gold picks pace, flirts with $5,000

Gold is back on the front foot on Wednesday, shaking off part of the early week softness and pushing higher towards the key $5,000 mark per troy ounce. The move comes ahead of the FOMC Minutes and is unfolding despite an intense rebound in the US Dollar.

Fed Minutes to shed light on January hold decision amid hawkish rate outlook

The Minutes of the Fed’s January 27-28 monetary policy meeting will be published today. Details of discussions on the decision to leave the policy rate unchanged will be scrutinized by investors.

Mixed UK inflation data no gamechanger for the Bank of England

Food inflation plunged in January, but service sector price pressure is proving stickier. We continue to expect Bank of England rate cuts in March and June. The latest UK inflation read is a mixed bag for the Bank of England, but we doubt it drastically changes the odds of a March rate cut.

Sui extends sideways action ahead of Grayscale’s GSUI ETF launch

Sui is extending its downtrend for the second consecutive day, trading at 0.95 at the time of writing on Wednesday. The Layer-1 token is down over 16% in February and approximately 34% from the start of the year, aligning with the overall bearish sentiment across the crypto market.