Copper Climbs Trump could cut back tariff plans

Futures are up 1.7% at $3,350.60 a troy ounce and on track for weekly gains of nearly 4%.

“Without a fundamental shift in U.S. fiscal policy, the implications of rising borrowing costs and widening fiscal deficits means the U.S. is on an unstable fiscal policy path, which could lead to heightened market volatility,” says Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at Forex.com.

Source – The Washington Street Journal

A bevy of tariff headlines this week along with geopolitical worries has left investors wary and weary, taking stocks lower in Asian hours, gold to a record peak and the yen to its highest in over two months as sentiment remains fragile.

The risk-off mood meant the yen – already underpinned by rising odds of the Bank of Japan hiking rates again – was the main mover among currencies, hitting its highest level since early December and was last at 150.48 per dollar.

Both Citi and Goldman raised their target price on gold this month, predicting it to breach the $3,000 mark. A large part of the reason behind the bullishness is sustained demand from central banks. Perhaps in these uncertain times, gold is all that shines.

Source – Reuters

Investors are increasingly seeking safe-haven in hard assets like gold, silver, copper and platinum, historically viewed as stores of value in times of financial uncertainty, Saxo Bank’s Ole Hansen says in a note.

Source – Wall Street Journal

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Futures (in finance) – Are contracts to buy or sell a specific underlying asset at a future date.

Gold prices in Lucknow continue to reflect the national upward trend, with 22-karat gold priced at Rs 9,395 per gram and 24-karat (999) gold at Rs 10,248 per gram as of Wednesday. These rates are slightly higher than those in several other major cities, including Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata, where 22K gold is priced at Rs 9,380 and 24K gold at Rs 10,233 per gram.

Source – ABP-Live

Rs – means Relative Strength and is used in momentum investing and in identifying value stocks.

With prices for most of its popular products ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 yuan, Laopu now competes more directly with Western luxury brands such as Tiffany and Cartier.

As rising gold prices in 2024 pushed investors toward bullion and coins and gold jewellery sales in China fell 24.69% to 532.02 tonnes, Laopu twice raised prices on its designer jewellery and trinkets. It again upped prices by 5-12% last month.

But analysts say Laopu is a contender to fully break through the luxury glass ceiling.

“It’s not an imminent threat to global luxury groups because to build a luxury brand takes a long time. You need a story, you need a history, you need the craftsmanship, but it’s possible,” said Jonathan Yan, a principal at consultancy Roland Berger in Shanghai.

Source – Reuters