Market Update

The United States Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, suggested on Tuesday that raising interest rates might be necessary in order to avoid the economy overheating amid increased government stimulus spending and investment plans. “It may be that interest rates will have to rise somewhat to make sure that our …

European stocks dropped on Tuesday, mainly due to large losses by the tech sector that echoed the decline of tech stocks in Wall Street across the Atlantic. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell by 1.5%, with the technology sector losing about 3.8% in its worst daily performance since October 2020. …

New factory orders in the United States increased in March, supported by an improving local demand. In addition, business spending on equipment exceeded market expectations, data showed on Tuesday. Factory orders rose by 1.1% in March, following a 0.5% decline in February, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Unfilled …

Building permits in Canada increased in March compared with the month before, data showed on Tuesday. In March, the total value of Canadian building permits surged by 5.7% on a monthly basis to reach a seasonally adjusted level of CAD 10.9 billion, according to data by Statistics Canada. February’s reading …

Canada’s imports increased by 5.5% in March, while exports leveled up by 0.3%, data by Statistics Canada showed on Tuesday. Accordingly, the Canadian international merchandise trade balance returned to a deficit position, following two consecutive monthly trade surpluses. Canada registered a trade deficit of CAD 1.1 billion in March, compared …

The UK is on the way to dispense with the covid-19 social distancing rule before the end of next month, which requires people to stay at least one meter away, according to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The British government is proceeding according to a roadmap it has set for itself …

Gold prices fell from their highest level in more than two months today, Tuesday, as the dollar’s recovery limited the metal’s appeal as a safe haven, while investors speculate that the US economic recovery at a faster than expected pace may lead to a hike in interest rates. And gold …

The Turkish auto distributors association said on Tuesday that sales of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in Turkey jumped 132.4% year on year in April to 61,488 units. The union added that sales increased 72.4% annually from January to April.

The dollar has turned higher in Asian trading, halting a month-long downturn, as investors are working to see if the major US economic recovery may push interest rates higher, as they await upcoming economic data and policy speeches for indicators. The US currency rose 0.2% against the yen, euro and …

Saudi Aramco announced a 30% increase in net profits to 81.4 billion riyals (about $21.7 billion) in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the same quarter of the previous year, and analysts had expected a net profit of 19.48 billion dollars. In a statement on the Saudi Stock Exchange …