Most of the Gulf stock exchanges fell with the decline of the dollar, oil and gold
Most of the Gulf stock exchanges witnessed a decline, and the US dollar, gold and oil indices declined, while the yields of euro zone bonds rose, with US yields recording the highest level in 15 years.
In the Gulf, most stock markets closed lower, as investors were disappointed by the latest stimulus measures in China, and the Qatari index was the biggest loser.
China’s central bank cut its one-year loan rate by 10 basis points and fixed it on the five-year one, surprising analysts who had expected cuts of 15 basis points for both.
The Qatari index fell by more than 1%, as most stocks fell on the index, including Qatar Islamic Bank, which fell 2.1%. The Saudi index gave up its early gains to close down 0.8%, and oil giant Saudi Aramco fell 1.6%.
The Abu Dhabi index fell 0.3%. However, the Dubai index bucked the general trend, recording an increase of 0.1%, supported by the rise of the share of “Emirates NBD Bank”, the emirate’s largest bank, by 1.2%.
A barrel of Brent crude futures fell 34 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $84.46, and US crude futures fell 53 cents, or 0.65%, to $80.72.
Dollar and major currencies
In the foreign exchange market, the dollar retreated today, from the highest level in two months, after gains for five consecutive weeks, amid improving risk in Europe.
The dollar index, which measures the US currency against 6 other major currencies, fell in the latest trading by 0.2% to 103.18, but it is still close to its highest level in two months at 103.68, which it recorded last Friday.
The Australian dollar reached $0.642, and the New Zealand dollar reached $0.5926, levels close to their 9-month lows that they hit last week.
The offshore yuan fell to more than 7.3 per dollar before heading upwards. The euro rose 0.3% to $1.0906, while the British pound rose slightly to $1.2756. The Swiss Franc rose just above its 6-week low hit last week at 0.8793 per dollar.
The Russian ruble also fell below 94 against the dollar, but its trading witnessed relative stability after one of the most volatile weeks of the year, when a sudden interest rate hike to 12% led to its recovery after it had fallen past the $100 threshold.
Russia’s central bank raised interest rates by 350 basis points in the wake of the ruble’s drop to a 17-month low of 101.75 per dollar, which it hit on Monday. The currency hit a two-week high of 92.55 on Thursday.
Higher European and American bond yields
In addition, yields on government bonds in the eurozone rose sharply today, Monday, with US Treasury yields rising for 10 years to their highest levels in 15 years, supported by expectations of continuing to raise interest rates for a longer period.
US Treasury yields for 10 years rose to 4.35%, adding upward pressure on Eurozone bond yields.
The German 10-year bund yield rose about 8 basis points over the course of the day at 2.7% after reaching 2.729% last week, its highest level since early March when it reached 2.77%.
Italian 10-year bond yields rose nearly seven basis points, at 4.39%.
Data released earlier in the day showed producer prices in Germany fell more than expected in July, primarily due to lower energy prices.
The German central bank also predicted that the country’s economy, the largest in Europe, will be relatively stagnant again during the current quarter, adding to the series of weak performance.
Germany’s GDP stagnated in the second quarter after declining over the previous two quarters, as the country suffered from rising energy prices, high borrowing costs, and the weak performance of China’s economy, which is a major trading partner for Germany.
Gold and precious metals
In the metals market, gold prices hovered near their lowest level in 5 months today, Monday, after high Treasury yields pressured the yellow metal, as investors focused on the central bankers’ meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, this week, in anticipation of their expectations for the economy and interest rates. .
The price of an ounce of gold in spot trading decreased by 0.1% to $ 1887.09 by 14:29 GMT. The futures price of US gold remained stable at $ 1916.
US Treasury yields for 10 years rose to 4.3379%, the highest level since October, which reduced the attractiveness of non-yielding bullion.
Gold fell to its lowest level since mid-March, recording $ 1883.7 last week, after optimistic economic data increased bets that US interest rates will continue to rise for a longer period.
As for other precious metals, silver spot contracts rose 1.1% to 22.94 dollars, platinum fell 0.5% to 905.48 dollars, and palladium fell 1.8% to 1233.1 dollars.
global stock indices
The US “Nasdaq” index rose by more than 1% today, Monday, the “Standard & Poor’s” index rose 1.9%, while the “Dow Jones” industrial fell 0.25%.
European stocks rose at the end of trading, ending a four-day losing streak with the rise of energy and mining stocks and the rise in global commodity prices, while the Danish pharmaceutical company (Novo Nordisk) led the gains in the healthcare sector.
The European Stoxx 600 index closed up 0.1%, after rising 0.9% during the day’s trading. It had closed at its lowest level in 6 weeks on Friday.
The Japanese “Nikkei” index closed higher, ending the trading gain by 0.37%, ending a series of losses that lasted 3 days. The broader Topix index rose 0.17%.
2023-08-21 19:56:09
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