US: Industrial production was unchanged in May following a large increase in April

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

Industrial production was unchanged in May following a large increase in April and smaller increases in February and March, announced the Federal Reserve Board on Thursday.

Key highlights:

Manufacturing output declined 0.4 percent in May; the index is little changed, on net, since February.
The indexes for mining and utilities posted gains of 1.6 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, in May. At 105.0 percent of its 2012 average, total industrial production in May was 2.2 percent above its year-earlier level.
Capacity utilization for the industrial sector edged down 0.1 percentage point in May to 76.6 percent, a rate that is 3.3 percentage points below its long-run (1972–2016) average.

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

AUD/USD holds steady above 0.7100 after weak Australian PMIs

AUD/USD remains range-bound around 0.7100 in the Asian session on Wednesday after Australia's flash PMIs showed manufacturing slipped into contraction and services expanding slowly for a second straight month. Furthermore, a bullish US Dollar acts as a headwind for the pair as traders keenly await the crucial Trump-Xi summit on Thursday. Meanwhile, markets shrugs off US-Iran indirect talks.

USD/JPY stands firm near mid-157.00s, close to two-week high

USD/JPY hovers around mid-157.00s in the Asian session on Wednesday, near two-week highs touched last Friday as the BoJ's dovish rate hike continues to undermine the Japanese Yen. Meanwhile, the US Dollar remains firm amid the Fed's hawkish stance, adding support to the pair, though JPY intervention fears cap further gains. Markets pay little heed to the completion of the round of US-Iran indirect talks ahead of Trump-Xi meeting.

Gold struggles near $4,350 as USD strength offsets softer bond yields

Gold struggles to build on the overnight bounce from sub-$4,300 levels and remains defensive in Wednesday's Asian session. The US Dollar sits near its July 30 high amid the Fed's hawkish stance and geopolitical risks, capping the bullion. Meanwhile, the recent decline in Oil prices eases inflation fears, keeping US bond yields depressed and limiting the downside in non-yielding yellow metal.

Ethereum holds above $2,700 as investors continue bullish positioning

Ethereum (ETH) held above $2,700 on Tuesday after starting the week on a positive note. The top crypto stretched its 7-day gains to 14% after energy prices and the US 10-year Treasury yields dipped on Monday.

AI capex enters the Fed's inflation case with October hike pricing past even money

AI capex enters the Fed's inflation case with October hike pricing past even money; UK headroom halved and French CDS at post-2020 wides before either budget lands; Pezeshkian in New York with a Gulf slot scheduled and no Iranian bilateral. Monday priced the same AI buildout at two completely different costs of capital.

BoJ Recap: Not as hawkish as expected

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) raised its short-term interest-rate target to 1.25% from 1.00% in a 7-2 vote, marking another step in the normalisation of monetary policy and widely matching what everyone has been expecting for weeks.