Oil climbs lifted by U.S.-China trade deal hopes OPEC cuts

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 by 0651 GMT. West Texas Intermediate […]

Cong bigwigs on ‘satyagraha’ against CAA, Jagan says won’t implement NRC

By Ritu, Capital Sands   Stating that democracy in India is under threat from the BJP-led government at the Center, 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”. As massive anti-Citizenship Amendment Act  […]

European shares edge lower ahead of Christmas holiday break

By Ritu, Capital Sands   European shares dipped slightly on Monday after nearing a record high in the previous session, as trading thinned ahead of the Christmas and Boxing Day holidays later in the week. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.1% at 0814 GMT, with the banking sector  leading declines. An improving outlook […]

China says bilateral relationship with U.S. has experienced serious difficulties

By Ritu, Capital Sands   China said Friday its relationship with the United States had experienced serious difficulties, but they should work in accordance with the consensus reached by the two countries’ leaders to push forward a stable bilateral relationship. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng made the comment at a meeting with the U.S. […]

U.S. dollar gains slightly after declining for two weeks

By Ritu, Capital Sands   With the release of a series of data, the U.S. dollar gained some ground on Friday in Asia after declining for two weeks.The U.S. dollar index rose 0.08% to 97.035 by 11:30 PM . The greenback has made a slight comeback after drifting further on Thursday on the news of U.S. […]

European stocks grind higher in pre-holiday trading

By Ritu, Capital Sands   European shares edged higher on Thursday, with a pre-holiday lull making for a quiet trading session aside from a handful of corporate updates. The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.2% by 0821 GMT, with media, healthcare and utilities sectors leading gains. All eyes will turn to the Bank of England’s monetary policy […]

In historic moment, U.S. House impeaches Donald Trump for abuse of power

By Ritu, Capital Sands.   Donald Trump became the third U.S. president to be impeached on Wednesday, as the House of Representatives formally charged him with abuse of power in a historic step that will inflame partisan tensions across a deeply divided America. The Democratic-led House passed the abuse of power article of impeachment on […]

Japan to trim annual government bond issuance next fiscal year – sources

By Ritu, Capital Sands   Japan plans to trim government bond issuance by 0.5% next fiscal year from current year’s levels, government officials said on Wednesday, as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe walks a fine line between supporting an economy and reining in huge public debt. The drop would mark the seventh straight year of declines […]

Trump ratings highest ever over economics despite impeachment proceedings

By Ritu, Capital Sands   Strong economic figures have helped US President Donald Trump to his highest approval ratings ever, despite impeachment, a new poll found Monday. Although the Quinnipiac University survey said Trump has a high of 43 per cent for his job approval, that is still far below nearly all previous presidents in modern times […]

Oil hovers near three-month high on trade optimism, supply cuts

By Ritu, Capital Sands Oil prices trickled a fraction lower on Tuesday but remained near a three-month high as investors kept the faith with hopes that a fully fledged U.S.-China trade deal is in the pipeline and set to stoke oil demand in the world’s biggest economies. Brent crude oil futures had slipped by three […]