Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is reiterating his institution’s commitment to programs aimed at keeping markets functioning and getting money to those who need it during the coronavirus crisis. In prepared remarks that Powell will deliver to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, he outlines the myriad programs the Fed has developed during the pandemic. “Th... read more

Gold prices on Monday headed sharply higher, putting the precious metal on track for its highest settlement since 2012. Bullion has marked mostly rangebound moves from a high of $1,788 to a low of $1,676 an ounce in recent weeks but has been underpinned by higher by worries about the harm to the global economy from the COVID-19 pandemic and the monetary-policy response by central banks to l... read more

Stocks fell on Friday on the back of a record plunge in U.S. retail sales and rising trade tensions between China and the U.S. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 86 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 slid 0.6% while the Nasdaq Composite declined by 0.8%. U.S. monthly retail sales fell by 16.4% in April, a record. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a decline of 12.3%. So-called core re... read more

Gold futures on Thursday were headed higher as investors digested an economic report on the labor market, which highlights a growing sense of the challenges the U.S. economy may face in recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. unemployment data showed that those seeking jobless benefits rose 2.98 million in week ended May 9. The number is higher than consensus estimates from economists pol... read more

HSBC's mark-to-market losses soared to nearly $200 million on a single day in March when gold prices in different markets sharply diverged, a Monday regulatory filing revealed. The one-day loss surged past the firm's value-at-risk calculations and further highlighted the commodity market turmoil seen at the end of March. When the coronavirus pandemic tanked global travel activity, gold's suppl... read more

Today was a historic day, not for the latest algo-driven meltup in stocks, but because for the first time ever, fed fund futures priced in negative rates, first in January 2021 and shortly after, as recently as November 2020. In response to the dramatic move which reverberated across asset classes, sending stocks and gold sharply higher, and 2Y yields plunging to record lows as markets sudd... read more

Gold prices gained on Thursday after a batch of sombre economic data heightened fears over global growth, while a stronger dollar and the easing of coronavirus-driven lockdowns by many countries limited the upside. Spot gold was up 0.4% at $1,691.95 per ounce. U.S. gold futures rose 0.6% to $1,698. Julius Baer analyst Carsten Menke said prices had hovered around $1,700 for a while. The... read more

The coronavirus that emerged in Wuhan, China, over four months ago has since mutated and the new, dominant strain spreading across the U.S. appears to be even more contagious, according to a new study. The new strain began spreading in Europe in early February before migrating to other parts of the world, including the United States and Canada, becoming the dominant form of the virus across th... read more

The S&P 500’s up over 30 percent from the March 22 closing low. What’s more, it’s only about 18 percent from its February 16 all-time closing high. Could it be that the market storm’s behind us and only sunny clear skies are ahead? Why not? Fed Chair Jay Powell’s manning the monetary levers with gusto. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s assuaging his Wall Street pals. And an... read more

Some economists expect there were at least 4 million workers who filed for state unemployment benefits last week, signaling the job losses could be greater than expected, as states catch up on claims applications. The sudden shutdown of the economy, starting in the second half of March, has resulted in an unprecedented number of layoffs and furloughs, and is expected to send claims for benefi... read more