European stocks closed on a firm note on Thursday as investors reacted positively to the European Central Bank\'s inflation forecast, and on optimism about interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year. The ECB decided to leave interest rates unchanged, as widely expected. The ECB expects the eurozone economy to grow 0.6% in 2024,...
After a weak start and a subsequent long spell in negative territory, the Switzerland market recovered and closed modestly higher on Thursday thanks to strong buying at select frontline counters. The benchmark SMI, which dropped to a low of 11,470.77 in early trades, ended the day\'s session at 11,575.37, gaining 28.90 points or 0.25%. Givaudan...
The U.S. dollar weakened against its major counterparts in the New York session on Thursday, as a downgrade of inflation forecasts by the European Central Bank intensified hopes for a rate cut in June. The ECB left the key interest rates unchanged and lowered inflation forecasts for this year and the next. The central bank...
Consumer credit in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in the month of January, according to a report released by the Federal Reserve on Thursday. The Fed said consumer credit jumped by $19.5 billion in January after inching up by a revised $0.9 billion in December. Economists had expected consumer credit to climb...
The U.S. dollar extended its recent weakness and shed ground against its major counterparts on Thursday amid continued bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year. The European Central Bank\'s policy announcement, its views on interest rates, Fed Chair Jerome Powell\'s congressional testimony, and the latest batch of U.S. economic data were all...
Canadian stocks moved higher and lifted the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index to a fresh one-year high on Wednesday thanks to sustained buying at several counters amid rising optimism about interest rate cuts by major central banks. The S&P/TSX Composite Index, which opened modestly higher at 21,629.05, ended the session with a strong gain of 200.60...
Asian stocks ended mixed on Thursday, with Japanese markets falling heavily as the yen hit a one-month high against the dollar on growing speculation that the Bank of Japan could end negative interest rates this month. Chinese and Hong Kong markets also ended lower as rising U.S.-China tensions overshadowed better-than-expected trade data for the first...
The euro weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Thursday. The euro fell to a 3-week low of 161.04 against the yen, from an early high of 162.69. Against the pound, the Swiss franc and the U.S. dollar, the euro slipped to 0.8548, 0.9593 and 1.0888 from early highs of 0.8563, 0.9621...
German stocks declined on Thursday after data showed Germany\'s factory orders declined sharply in January. New orders in manufacturing posted a monthly decline of 11.3 percent, in contrast to the 12.0 percent increase in December. Economists had forecast a 6.0 percent fall. Destatis said the sharp decline in January was due to the high volume...
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Rostin Behnam has reiterated his call for Congress to pass legislation clarifying crypto regulation. The call for congressional action was presented during Wednesday’s hearing before the House Agriculture Committee. Crypto Regulation is Lagging Behind Behnam emphasized the situation’s urgency, citing the rapid growth of the crypto market and its...