AgenciesHONG KONG, Nov 5 — Asian markets were mixed Friday following the previous day's gains, with eyes on the release of key US jobs data later in the day, while investors are also assessing the outlook for central bank monetary policy in the face of surging inflation.Friday's gains came after a recent heavy retreat in prices following news that Iran nuclear talks were progressing and could lead to the removal of sanctions barring the sale of Tehran's crude on world markets.Equities around the world enjoyed a healthy run-up Thursday after the Federal Reserve finally announced its plan for tapering the vast bond-buying programme that has provided crucial support since it was put in place at the start of the pandemic.The news removed a l...
November 5, 2021 at 11:45 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesNov. 04— Gold prices bounced back from a three-week low on Thursday as the dollar weakened after the US Federal Reserve approved plans to unwind its stimulus programme this month while retaining low interest rates for some time.Spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,774.11 per ounce, as of 0106 GMT, after touching its lowest since Oct. 13 in the previous session.The dollar index slipped 0.2% overnight and was trading little changed at 93.847 in early Asia trading.The Fed said it would start trimming its monthly bond purchases in November with plans to end them in 2022, and held to its belief that high inflation would prove "transitory" and likely not require a fast rise in interest rates.Gold, which pays no interest, tends to benefit when i...
November 4, 2021 at 2:43 pm | Economic Affairs
AgenciesCANBERRA, Nov. 04— US wheat futures rose on Thursday, hovered near nine-year highs touched earlier this week on concerns about global supplies amid robust demand.The most active wheat futures on the Chicago Board Of Trade were up 0.6% at $7.86 a bushel as of 0319 GMT, having closed 1.3% lower on Wednesday.Wheat hit a December 2012 high of $8.07 a bushel on Tuesday."The fundamentals remain very sound. There are question marks about Black Sea and South America production and that means stronger prices," said Phin Ziebell, agribusiness economist at National Australia Bank.Corn edged higher, drawing support from wheat, while soybeans edged lower.Most of the sprouted Ukrainian winter grain crop is in good or satisfactory condition, wh...
November 4, 2021 at 2:41 pm | Economic Affairs
ISLAMABAD, Oct 31 (APP): Vietnam Ambassador to Pakistan, Nguyen Tien Phong on Sunday said that Pakistan has huge trade and investment opportunities in Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN’s) US$ 3 trillion economy for increasing the bilateral trade and economic ties. With ASEAN’s US$ 3 trillion economic power and a large market of 650 million people in the region, the mutual US$7 billion trade between ASEAN and Pakistan is far below its potential, the Ambassador said this while addressing to the Pakistan ASEAN Business Forum, organized by United Business Group (UBG) of Federation Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) here. Ambassador said that Pakistan is a huge market with a Gross Domestic Product (...
November 1, 2021 at 12:43 pm | Economic Affairs
October 29,2021Islamabad ( Press Release) Federal Ministers for the Commerce Abdul Razaq Daud has said that the Second Pakistan Africa Trade Development Conference (PATDC) will be held at Lagos in Nigeria from 23 to 25 November 2021, along with a Single Country Exhibition. In an statement it is stated that this is the follow-up to the First PATDC held in Kenya in 2020. More than 100 companies from Pakistan are participating in the event. Ministry of Commerce (MOC) is committed to geographic and product diversification of exports.
October 29, 2021 at 12:27 pm | Economic Affairs
AgenciesHONG KONG, Oct. 28 —Fears over rising inflation and pressure on central banks to tighten monetary policy sent markets lower in Asian trade Thursday as investors contemplate the end of the era of cheap cash, while spiking Covid infections act as a reminder that the pandemic is far from over.Ongoing worries about China's vast property sector and the future of giant developer Evergrande were also in view ahead of a payment deadline, while uncertainty over Joe Biden's social spending plan was also keeping a lid on sentiment.However, a string of healthy corporate earnings has provided a crucial boost to trading floors, helping push markets to multi-year or record highs this week, while Apple and Amazon are due to report later in the d...
October 28, 2021 at 12:29 pm | Economic Affairs
AgenciesOct. 26 — Gold prices eased on Tuesday, weighed down by an uptick in the dollar and US bond yields, as investors assessed central banks' likely response to higher inflation ahead of key upcoming policy meetings.Spot gold fell 0.2% to $1,803.51 per ounce by 0329 GMT. US gold futures dropped 0.1% to $1,805.30.The metal rose nearly 1% to a high of $1,809.66 on Monday, only about $4 shy of an over one-month peak scaled last week.The dollar rose 0.1% on Tuesday, recovering from a near one-month trough hit during the previous session, souring gold's appeal to buyers holding other currencies.Benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields were also a tad higher at 1.6369%, raising non-interest bearing gold's opportunity cost."Gold should remain re...
October 26, 2021 at 11:09 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesHONG KONG, Oct. 26 — Fresh records on Wall Street moved mostly Asian markets up on Tuesday following healthy corporate earnings overshadowing ongoing concerns about inflation, while progress in Washington on Joe Biden's big-spending economic plans also provided support.Tokyo led gains, piling on 1.8 percent in the morning while Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Wellington, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta also rose.However, a fresh virus outbreak in China, which has left tens of thousands of people in lockdown, revived concerns about the world's number two economy and authorities' zero-Covid policies.The S&P 500 and Dow both ended at new peaks, with tech firms lifted by a surge in electric car maker Tesla to the trillion-dollar mark ahead o...
October 26, 2021 at 11:07 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesOct. 26 — US dollar has bounced off recent lows and was firm in choppy trade on Tuesday ahead of a handful of data releases and central bank meetings which investors expect to guide the rates outlook.The euro fell 0.3% overnight on softer-than-forecast German business morale and expectations that the European Central Bank (ECB) will stay dovish when it meets on Thursday whereas, euro last bought $1.1598, near a one-week low.Other overnight moves were modest, with the dollar easing a tad on the Aussie, kiwi and sterling. It was steady on Tuesday save for a small rise on Japan’s yen to 113.83 yen, and a slight dip on the Aussie.The U.S. dollar index rose held at 93.856.“The dollar looks to be finding its feet in the mid-93s,”...
October 26, 2021 at 11:06 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesSINGAPORE, Oct. Oct25 — US oil may test a resistance at $84.94 per barrel, a break above could lead to a gain into the $85.66-$86.64 range.The Oct. 20 high of $84.25 has been surpassed.The uptrend from the August 23 low of $61.74 has thus been confirmed.The trend is presumed to be riding on a wave 3 from $79.42, which could extend to $86.64.This wave makes a part of a bigger wave (5), which may extend a lot, if the current wave count turns out to be correct.However, the unusual consolidation from the Oct. 20 high of $84.25, which was shaped into an expanding wedge, undermines this wave count.Support is at $83.88, a break below which could cause a fall into $81.12-$83.03 range. On the daily chart, oil has broken a resistance at $8...
October 25, 2021 at 6:00 pm | Economic Affairs
genciesHONG KONG, Oct. 25— Asian markets were mixed Monday after last week's gains with investors keeping a worried eye on a fresh Covid outbreak in China that could drag on the already stuttering economy.Long-running worries about inflation continued to cast a shadow over trading floors, though a healthy batch of earnings have tempered those concerns in the past couple of weeks.Reporting by tech titans including Amazon, Apple, Samsung and Microsoft are on the agenda this week, and will be closely followed for an idea about what impact supply chain snarls and rising prices is having on their bottom lines.Their forward guidance will also be of interest as they contemplate tighter central bank monetary policies and a possible hike in inter...
October 25, 2021 at 5:59 pm | Economic Affairs
AgenciesHong Kong, Oct. 25– US dollar steadied on Monday after its steepest weekly loss in more than a month, as traders weigh the effect of inflation on the relative pace of looming rate hikes - with a wary eye on U.S. growth data and a European Central Bank meeting.Dollar was firm against the yen especially, at $1.1643 per euro and found a footing on the yen at 113.54 after Friday’s slide.The Australian and New Zealand dollars were held below the multi-month peaks they had scaled during last week.Greenback had softened, especially against the yen, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Friday it was time to start cutting back asset purchases, though not yet time to begin raising interest rates.His remarks came as investors...
October 25, 2021 at 5:58 pm | Economic Affairs
EA ReportLahore, Oct. 20 — KSE-100 index opened on a negative note and experienced a volatile session.Experts recommend to trade with a cautious approach and accumulate positions on weakness with risk defined below aforementioned support zone.The session compromised on a swing of more than 550pts, a high of 172pts, a low of 379pts and recorded a loss of 192pts to settle at 44,629pts level.Trading volumes witnessed in the last trading session were comparatively lower than the previous trading session.The index has been forming a higher high and a higher low for the last three consecutive trading sessions. The index closed above the lower band by 47.0%. Bollinger Bands are 3.12% wider than normal.Among the popular momentum indicators, Stoc...
October 20, 2021 at 11:10 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesHONG KONG. Oct.19 — Asian markets advanced further on Wednesday, joining a global rally fuelled by strong earnings, while investors were keeping tabs on comments from the Federal Reserve as it prepares to bring an end to its vast financial support programme.Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei and Manila all rose, though there were slight losses in Shanghai and Seoul.Signs of progress on Joe Biden's massive spending bill provided an extra lift to sentiment, while bitcoin came within touching distance of a new record after a new financial instrument to invest in the cryptocurrency started trading in New York.Strong profit reports from big-name firms over the past week have reinforced optimism that the corporate ...
October 20, 2021 at 11:05 am | Economic Affairs
AgenciesNew York, Oct 18 — U.S. dollar headed towards its one-year high hit last week on Monday following rising inflation expectations and higher bond yields boosted its appeal against its rivals.Dollar index rose 0.1% to 94.02, edging it back toward last week’s one-year high of 94.563 which was the highest level since September 2020.Sterling also managed to hold on close to steady after hawkish weekend remarks from Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey who said policymakers "will have to act" as energy prices drive consumer prices higher.U.S. Treasury yields firmed on Monday, extending a trend in recent weeks with five-year bond yields rising to their highest levels since February 2020 as investors ramped up bets that the U.S. Feder...
October 18, 2021 at 3:25 pm | Economic Affairs
AgenciesOct. 18— Gold prices edged up on Monday after a steep sell-off in previous session as US bond yields and dollar softened.FUNDAMENTALSSpot gold rose 0.2% to $1,770.26 per ounce by 202 GMT, after slipping 1.6% on Friday.US gold futures were up 0.1% at $1,770.50.Asia Gold: India returns to premiumBenchmark US 10-year Treasury yields eased after rising to a high of 1.5904% on Monday, reducing non-yielding gold's opportunity cost.Treasury yields rose sharply on Friday after data showed US retail sales unexpectedly rose in September which bolstered expectations for sooner-than-anticipated interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve.Also supporting bullion, the dollar index slipped 0.6% from last week's 2021 highs, as investors figure ...
October 18, 2021 at 3:21 pm | Economic Affairs
Pakistan Rupee Exchange Rate