EUR/USD
1.17161
0.034%
Gold
4591.44
-0.124%
Oil
96.999
-0.496%
USD/JPY
159.557
-0.036%
GBP/USD
1.35227
0.038%
GBP/JPY
215.769
0.011%
Real-time News
On April 29th, former Federal Reserve Vice Chairman and economist Roger Ferguson stated, "Regarding the dual mandate, the Fed will indicate that the labor market is broadly stable. As for the inflation mandate, (with inflation still hovering at a high 3%), there is still much work to be done." He anticipates the Fed will say, "We will hold steady for now and see how things develop." Similarly, Goldman Sachs economist David Merrick expects the Feds post-meeting statement to acknowledge improvements in the labor market and rising inflation data, but to maintain its current policy guidance. We expect a majority to still support keeping interest rates unchanged, with only one dissenting voice, similar to the situation in March.1. US crude oil futures closed up 3.37% at $99.62 per barrel; Brent crude oil futures rose 2.74% to $104.48 per barrel. The deadlock in US-Iran negotiations and continued disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz pose a clear risk of disruption to global oil transportation. US API crude oil inventories decreased more than expected, and supply-side uncertainty supported stronger oil prices. 2. International precious metals futures generally closed lower. COMEX gold futures fell 1.79% to $4609.60 per ounce, and COMEX silver futures fell 2.59% to $73.08 per ounce. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East provided support for precious metals, but rising expectations of the Federal Reserve maintaining high interest rates pushed up holding costs. Combined with increased uncertainty in the Eurozone, this resulted in a tug-of-war between bulls and bears. 3. Most London base metals fell. LME nickel rose 1.74% to $19,430.0/ton, LME lead fell 0.43% to $1,951.5/ton, LME tin fell 0.47% to $49,105.0/ton, LME aluminum fell 1.09% to $3,539.0/ton, LME zinc fell 1.13% to $3,359.5/ton, and LME copper fell 1.35% to $13,034.5/ton. 4. All three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.05% to 49,141.93 points, the S&P 500 fell 0.49% to 7,138.8 points, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9% to 24,663.8 points. Sherwin-Williams fell more than 3%, and Nvidia fell more than 1%, leading the Dow Jones decline. The Wind US Tech Big Seven Index fell 0.27%, with Facebook down over 1% and Tesla down 0.7%. The Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index fell 0.49%, with Kingsoft Cloud down over 6% and GDS Holdings down nearly 5%. Lagging OpenAI growth has led investors to reassess the sustainability of AI spending, causing widespread panic in tech stocks. European stock markets closed mixed: the German DAX fell 0.27% to 24018.26 points; the French CAC40 fell 0.46% to 8104.09 points; and the UK FTSE 100 rose 0.11% to 10332.79 points. The ongoing stalemate in US-Iran talks pushed up oil prices, exacerbating inflationary pressures in Europe; with the European Central Banks interest rate meeting approaching this week, market risk aversion intensified.Futures News, April 29th - According to foreign media reports, London Metal Exchange (LME) copper futures fell for the fourth consecutive day on Tuesday, hitting a two-week low, mainly due to a stronger US dollar, continued Middle East conflict boosting oil prices, and raising concerns about inflation and global economic growth. With the Iraq War now in its ninth week and no sign of a peaceful resolution in sight, the industrial metals sector continues to be affected by concerns about economic growth and demand stemming from the Middle East crisis. ING strategists stated that the conflicting parties appear to remain in a stalemate, and the supply of oil and other goods through the Strait of Hormuz remains severely restricted. This uncertainty puts pressure on the demand outlook for copper, which is dependent on economic growth. The market is focused on comments from central bank policymakers regarding inflationary pressures, with the Federal Reserve expected to maintain interest rates unchanged.According to foreign media reports on April 29th, American drivers are feeling an increasingly heavy "pain of refueling." Data from the American Automobile Association (AAA) on Tuesday (28th) shows that the average price of regular gasoline across the United States has risen to its highest level in nearly four years. Since the US-Israel attacks on Iran at the end of February, gasoline prices have risen by more than 40%. Data shows that the average price of gasoline across the US on Tuesday was close to $4.18 per gallon, up 11 cents so far this month; and up $1.19 per gallon since the end of February. More worryingly, there is still room for further price increases—last week, Brent crude futures rose by about 16% and US WTI crude rose by nearly 13% as diplomatic efforts to end the war with Iran stalled and supply concerns intensified. GasBuddy analysts pointed out that refinery maintenance and scheduled upkeep in the Great Lakes region will keep consumers in the region facing persistently high gasoline prices.The UKs National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) has lowered its 2026 UK economic growth forecast from 1.4% to 0.9% based on a moderate scenario.
