The BRICS countries—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—are advancing a plan to launch a common digital currency by 2026–2027. The initiative is designed to reduce dependency on the U.S. dollar, strengthen financial cooperation among member states, and offer an alternative framework for international payments and settlements. At their latest summit, BRICS leaders emphasized practical … Read more
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has outlined the Trump administration’s approach to replacing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, whose term expires in May 2025. In a Bloomberg interview, Bessent said the administration is already considering current Federal Reserve officials for the job. Officials are weighing two primary options. One option would be to nominate a replacement … Read more
Key Takeaways On May 16, 2025, Moody’s downgraded the United States from Aaa to Aa1, completing the removal of the US from the top sovereign credit tier after S&P and Fitch had already taken similar steps. Gold closed at $3,237 per ounce on the day of the downgrade and trades around $4,550 today — more … Read more
Oil prices slipped in choppy trading as investors weighed a mix of political and market developments from the Trump administration. Brent crude eased toward $74 a barrel despite fresh U.S. sanctions targeting entities connected to Iranian oil shipments. At the same time, President Trump confirmed that tariffs on Canada and Mexico—two of the United States’ … Read more
Gold and silver moved sharply on Thursday — initially falling at the open and then rallying later in the day, even as several bearish catalysts hit simultaneously. May’s Producer Price Index rose 6.5% year-over-year, the hottest wholesale inflation reading since November 2022 and slightly above the 6.4% forecast. Most of the rise was driven by … Read more
Investors have made the largest-ever shift away from US equities, according to Bank of America’s most recent survey. Fund managers now report being 23% underweight in US stocks — a dramatic 40 percentage point decline from the previous survey. The rapid reversal reflects falling confidence in American markets after the S&P 500 slipped roughly 8% … Read more
Oil markets were steady on Friday, with Brent and WTI crude finishing the week largely unchanged as traders weighed a softer demand outlook from the International Energy Agency (IEA) against persistent tariff and geopolitical risks. The IEA revised its forecasts by raising expected supply growth while marginally lowering demand projections. Despite the demand downgrade, the … Read more
Silver climbed to $32.30 as investors moved into safe-haven assets after President Trump announced new steel and aluminum tariffs. The news renewed demand for precious metals, lifting silver prices amid increased market uncertainty. Prices were also helped by a pullback in the US Dollar Index, which eased from 108.50 to 108.10. A softer dollar typically … Read more
The recent U.S. decision to exempt certain consumer electronics from newly announced 145% tariffs has been interpreted by many observers as a sign of weakness in the trade confrontation with China. Officials in Washington argue these carve-outs are carefully considered and intended to limit disruption for U.S. consumers and supply chains. Critics, however, contend the … Read more
Markets are reacting to President Trump’s unexpectedly measured tone on tariffs during his first 24 hours in office. Gold has moved higher, trading above $2,780 Friday morning as the dollar softens. Several technical indicators point to further upside potential. READ MORE MacroButler: 10 Predictions for 2025 Could 2025 bring an “inflationary bust”? Will rate hikes … Read more