Turkey accuses US of waging 'economic war' in pastor dispute - Reuters

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

Turkish President Erdogan spokesman Ibrahim Kalin noted the following in a written statement to Reuters late-Wednesday, responding to comments by Trump adviser John Bolton.

“His statement is proof that the Trump administration is targeting a NATO ally as part of an economic war.”

“The Trump administration has ... established that it intends to use trade, tariffs and sanctions to start a global trade war.”

“Turkey has no intention of starting an economic war with any party. It cannot, however, be expected to keep silent in the face of attacks against its economy and judiciary.”

Kalin said Turkey would work with the rest of the world against restrictive and punitive measures.

On Wednesday, the US President Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton said that Turkey made a "big mistake" in not releasing pastor Brunson.

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

EUR/USD edges lower below 1.1650 as Middle East tensions fuel US Dollar strength

The EUR/USD pair trades in negative territory around 1.1635 during the early Asian session on Thursday. The US Dollar strengthens against the Euro as escalating Middle East conflict boosts safe-haven flows. Traders brace for the Eurozone Retail Sales and US weekly Initial Jobless Claims reports, which will be released later on Thursday.

GBP/USD tests key moving averages as growth downgrade weighs

GBP/USD was nearly flat on Wednesday, edging up 0.08% to settle around 1.3370 in a quiet session. The pair has fallen sharply from its late-January high near 1.3870 and is now testing the 200-day Exponential Moving Average, with this week's one-week forex heatmap showing Pound Sterling as one of the worst performers against the US Dollar, down about 1.4% on the week.

Gold re-attempts $5,200 amid a softer USD; reduced Fed rate cut bets cap gains

Gold bounces toward $5,200 for the second consecutive day on Thursday amid a modest US Dollar weakness. Wednesday's upbeat US macro data further tempered hopes for three rate cuts by the Fed in 2026. Furthermore, escalating Middle East tensions might continue to benefit the USD's status as the global reserve currency and contribute to capping the bullion.