Trading news

DBS Group Research economist Chua Han Teng expects the People’s Bank of China to keep the 1-year Loan Prime Rate at 3.00% on February 24, as January data are still unfolding.

MUFG analysts Lin Li, Michael Wan, Lloyd Chan and Khang Sek Lee highlight an Asia‑centric week dominated by geopolitics, inflation and monetary policy.

UOB Global Economics & Markets Research reports that Malaysia’s inflation remained stable in January, slightly below its own forecast and in line with consensus. Despite solid 4Q25 GDP, price pressures are seen as contained, reducing the urgency for policy changes.

DBS Group Research’s Radhika Rao highlights that Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas cut its policy rate by 25bps to 4.25%, citing weaker-than-expected recovery, softer confidence and delayed government spending.

The AUD/USD advances for the second straight day, up by 0.36% as the Greenback edges lower as US economic growth takes a toll while inflation accelerates towards the 3% threshold. At the time of writing, the pair trades at 0.7086, poised to end the week with gains of over 0.19%.

Gold prices rally more than 1% on Friday after economic growth in the US decelerated, while inflation rose past the 3% threshold as depicted by the Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index, the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) favorite inflation gauge.

MUFG’s Senior Currency Analyst Lloyd Chan notes that Bank Indonesia kept its 2026 growth forecast at 4.9%–5.7% and still expects inflation to stay within its 1.5%–3.5% target. However, upside inflation risks could weigh on the Rupiah if policymakers let the economy run hotter.

The US Dollar (USD) held firm on Friday after the release of top-tier data, but the US Dollar Index (DXY) posted an acceptable weekly gain of almost 1%.

United States CFTC Gold NC Net Positions fell from previous $160K to $159.9K

United States CFTC Oil NC Net Positions up to 141.3K from previous 117.8K

Australia CFTC AUD NC Net Positions: $45.9K vs $33.2K

Eurozone CFTC EUR NC Net Positions down to €174.5K from previous €180.3K

Japan CFTC JPY NC Net Positions: ¥13K vs ¥-19.1K

United Kingdom CFTC GBP NC Net Positions declined to £-42.4K from previous £-25.8K

United States CFTC S&P 500 NC Net Positions: $-177.8K vs previous $-105.1K

UOB Global Economics & Markets Research highlights that Thailand’s economy remains a low‑growth, low‑inflation outlier, even as authorities project modest improvement in 2026 and 2027.

United States (US) President Donald Trump said on Friday he is deeply disappointed of certain members of the Supreme Court after it ruled that his sweeping tariffs are illegal. In a press conference in Washington DC, Trump has vowed to impose a 10% "global tariff" using an alternative law.

DBS Group Research economist Chua Han Teng forecasts Singapore core and headline inflation rising to 1.5% year-on-year in January 2026 from 1.2% in December, helped by low base effects and stronger services prices.

Following the US Supreme Court's decision to declare US President Donald Trump's "national security" tariffs unlawful, President Trump gave a press conference to deliver his reaction to the Supreme Court's decision.

ING’s Min Joo Kang expects the Bank of Korea to keep its policy rate at 2.5% next week as inflation remains close to target and financial instability concerns persist.