Gold sustained its recent gains on the back of soft U.S. employment data and retreating crude prices, both of which pared Federal Reserve rate hike expectations. Falling oil prices due to recovering Strait of Hormuz flows further alleviated global inflation anxieties, while the disappointing June payrolls report pushed the odds of a September rate hike down to 50%.
The yen weakened as Japanese authorities abstained from market intervention despite repeated warnings, erasing half of the currency's recent gains. Investors remain skeptical about the long-term impact of potential unilateral intervention, though soft U.S. employment figures and lowered Federal Reserve rate hike expectations provided a minor floor.
Bitcoin stabilized and recovered from its recent lows, driven by legislative optimism, substantial ETF inflows, and a broader macro risk-on sentiment. While technical indicators lean neutral-to-bullish, heavy overhead resistance and repeated failed breakouts suggest upside momentum is slowing, pointing toward near-term consolidation.
Brent crude hovered near multi-month lows as shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz normalized, and OPEC+ confirmed a production increase. Growing supply confidence, underscored by recovering Saudi exports and restored UAE shipments, helped systematically ease regional supply disruption anxieties.
The Nasdaq-100 index was buoyed by soft U.S. labor data, which mitigated immediate interest rate fears and supported technology stocks. Technical sentiment remains neutral-to-bullish, though the index requires a sustained breach to target higher levels, with failure risking a consolidation pullback toward key support.
The yuan softened as traders positioned ahead of crucial domestic inflation data. Despite the slight currency weakness, recent economic metrics signaled stable underlying momentum for the close of the second quarter, aided by easing trade disruptions and resilient manufacturing data that beat consensus forecasts.