Pound Steady as Silver Falls from Record High

Sterling hovered near $1.3337 as the dollar steadied early Thursday, with silver pulling back from Wednesday’s record high of $58.98 and spot gold easing to $4179 per ounce ahead of next week’s Federal Reserve decision. Brent crude rose to $63.08 after Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure, while WTI moved to $59.40 as expectations for a peace deal faded. Japanese government bond yields retreated from record highs after official comments tempered expectations for rapid policy tightening, while the yen traded around ¥155.22 and China’s yuan softened from a 14-month high following another weaker midpoint setting.

Equities

The FTSE 100 closed 0.1% lower on Wednesday, held back mainly by weakness in bank shares after the UK’s financial regulator confirmed that the pause on handling motor-finance complaints will end on 31 May 2026. Lloyds fell 1.4% on Wednesday, while Close Brothers and Barclays each slipped about 0.7% as the market assessed the potential impact of a formal compensation scheme linked to historic car-finance mis-selling. HSBC dropped 1.6% after naming interim chair Brendan Nelson as permanent chief executive.

Energy and mining stocks moved in the opposite direction. BP rose 1.3% on Wednesday as oil prices strengthened. Glencore climbed 6.3% after setting out plans to reach 1.6 million tonnes of copper production by 2035. Antofagasta added 4.9% and Anglo American gained 2.5% after copper prices hit a record high. London Stock Exchange Group advanced 1.4% following an agreement with OpenAI to integrate its financial data and analytics into ChatGPT. Sainsbury fell 4.2% after a term sheet late on Tuesday showed that Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund intends to cut its stake in the supermarket chain.

In the United States, equity indices closed higher on Wednesday as the S&P 500 rose 0.30%. A rebound in Microsoft late in the session provided some support. The stock had fallen as much as 3% earlier on Wednesday after reports claimed the company had reduced AI-software sales quotas following missed targets in the year to June. Microsoft disputed the report, and its shares ended the day down 2.5%. The Nasdaq finished 0.17% higher, while the Dow gained 0.86%.

Several U.S. companies posted sharp moves. Marvell Technology rose 7.9% on Wednesday after agreeing to buy semiconductor start-up Celestial AI in a $3.25bn deal. Microchip Technology jumped 12.2% after raising its third-quarter expectations. In the retail sector, American Eagle Outfitters surged 15.1% after raising its annual comparable-sales forecast on Wednesday, pointing to stronger holiday-season demand.

Forex & Commodities

The dollar held steady near a five-week low after recent U.S. data reinforced expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut next week. The dollar index was broadly unchanged at 98.94. The euro eased slightly to $1.1657 but remained close to a seven-week high set on Wednesday after eurozone business activity data pointed to the fastest expansion in 30 months. Sterling traded at $1.3337, near its strongest level since late October. The yen was flat at ¥155.22 per dollar, having moved away from last month’s 10-month low as markets assessed the likelihood of Bank of Japan rate increases in December.

Spot gold slipped early on Thursday to $4179 per ounce as investors took profits ahead of next week’s Fed meeting. Silver fell to $57.22 after touching a record high of $58.98 on Wednesday, supported this year by concerns about market liquidity and a structural supply deficit. Platinum traded at $1640 per ounce and palladium at $1439.

Oil prices moved up early on Thursday. Brent crude rose to $63.08 and WTI to $59.40 after Ukrainian strikes on Russian refining and pipeline infrastructure added to supply concerns. Consultancy Kpler said refinery attacks since September have reduced Russian processing rates by about 335,000 barrels per day compared with a year earlier. Expectations for peace talks did not improve after U.S. representatives left meetings in Moscow on Wednesday without progress.