By Ritu, Capital Sands The Chinese yuan hit almost five-month highs and the USD continued to retreat on the last day of the year in Asia. The U.S. dollar index was down 0.06% to 96.69 by 8:45 PM ET, continuing a multi-day slide. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) set the reference rateRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands Oil prices rose more than 20% this year but there were no sharp spikes and crude futures barely sniffed $70 a barrel despite attacks on the world’s biggest oil producer, sanctions that crippled crude exports of two OPEC members and gigantic supply cuts from big oilRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands The dollar was on the defensive on Monday in light year-end trading after suffering a setback the previous session, as hopes of a U.S.-China trade deal lifted investors’ risk appetite, sapping safe-haven demand for the greenback. The dollar index was stable at 96.942 against six major currencies afterRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands Oil prices rose on Friday, hitting three-month highs after data showed record online spending by U.S. consumers, stoking faith in the world’s no. 1 economy even before the hoped-for end to the trade war between Washington and Beijing. Brent crude futures were up 6 cents, orRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands   The dollar hovered near a six-month high versus the Japanese yen while the Australian dollar climbed to its strongest since July on Friday, buoyed by easing Sino-U.S. trade tensions. The optimism around prospects for a trade deal reduced demand for safe-haven currencies such as theRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands   Oil prices rose on Thursday, buoyed by a potential breakthrough in the Sino-U.S. trade war and OPEC-led efforts to constrain supply, although trading was quiet as many markets were in holiday mode. Brent crude was up 28 cents, or 0.4%, at $67.48 a barrel byRead More →

By Ritu,      Capital Sands 1. No end in sight to the U.S.-China struggle for supremacy The trade war between the U.S. and China, which hobbled the world economy almost single-handedly in 2019 is likely to leave deep marks on 2020 too. The International Monetary Fund estimated in OctoberRead More →

Europe to Edge Lower Despite ECB Support

By Ritu, Capital Sands   European shares traded near all-time highs on Tuesday in a holiday-shortened week, helped by optimism about the global economic outlook amid progress in U.S.-China trade talks. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was nearly unchanged . Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.2% and Spain’s IBEX ) easedRead More →

By Ritu, Capital Sands Stating that democracy in India is under threat from the BJP-led government at the Centre, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to chief ministers and senior leaders belonging to opposition parties urging them to unite and chalk out a plan to “save the country”. AsRead More →