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OPEC+ to Hold June 2 Output Policy Meeting Online

FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
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OPEC+ to Hold June 2 Output Policy Meeting Online

FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo

The OPEC+ group of oil producers, comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies led by Russia, has pushed back its output policy meeting by a day to June 2 and will convene online.
The meeting was to have been in Vienna on June 1, but will now be held online a day later, OPEC said on Friday.
OPEC+ oil producers are making voluntary output cuts totaling about 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) for the first half of 2024, led by Saudi Arabia rolling over an earlier voluntary cut.
The curbs are on top of earlier reductions of 3.66 million bpd to the end of 2024, announced in various steps since late 2022. That brings total pledged cuts to 5.86 million bpd, equal to about 5.7% of daily world demand, Reuters calculations show.
Sources from countries that have made voluntary supply cuts told Reuters this month that an extension was likely.
The OPEC+ supply cuts since late 2022 have been against a backdrop of rising output from the United States and other non-member producers while worries over demand have remained in focus as major economies grapple with high interest rates.

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Business

Gold Slips on Inflation Concerns as High Oil Prices and Stronger Dollar Weigh

An image made with a drone shows oil gas and fuel storage units at the Navigator Terminal in Grays, Britain, 14 April 2026. EPA/NEIL HALL
An image made with a drone shows oil gas and fuel storage units at the Navigator Terminal in Grays, Britain, 14 April 2026. EPA/NEIL HALL
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Gold Slips on Inflation Concerns as High Oil Prices and Stronger Dollar Weigh

An image made with a drone shows oil gas and fuel storage units at the Navigator Terminal in Grays, Britain, 14 April 2026. EPA/NEIL HALL
An image made with a drone shows oil gas and fuel storage units at the Navigator Terminal in Grays, Britain, 14 April 2026. EPA/NEIL HALL

Gold prices fell on Thursday, pressured by a stronger dollar and elevated oil prices that stoked inflation worries, as investors tried to assess the conflict direction from stalled US-Iran talks.

Spot gold was down 0.9% at $4,696.71 per ounce, as of 1135 GMT. US gold futures for June delivery fell 0.8% to $4,714.0.

The dollar inched higher, making greenback-priced bullion more expensive for holders of other currencies, while benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields rose to an over one-week high, raising the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion.

"Gold continues to take its cues from the oil market, with rising energy costs keeping the risk of near-term dollar strength and elevated inflation in focus," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

Iran seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as it tightened its grip on the strategic waterway after US President Donald Trump announced he was indefinitely calling off attacks, with no sign of peace talks restarting.

Iranian officials did not say they had agreed to any extension of the truce, accusing Washington of violating it by maintaining a blockade on Iranian trade by sea.

Brent crude oil prices rose above $100 a barrel on the stalled peace talks and as both nations maintained their restrictions on the flow of trade through the strait.

Higher crude oil prices can add to inflationary pressures, increasing the likelihood that interest rates remain elevated. While gold is often seen as an inflation hedge, higher rates dampen bullion’s appeal as it offers no yield.

Meanwhile, a Reuters poll of economists showed the US Federal Reserve will likely wait at least six months before cutting interest rates this year as war-driven energy shocks reignite already-elevated inflation.

"The current consolidation appears more a pause driven by rate uncertainty than a structural shift, and we maintain the view that gold is likely to reach a fresh record high later this year or in early 2027," Hansen added.

Spot silver fell 3.9% to $74.63 per ounce, while platinum lost 3.2% to $2,007.98, a more than one-week low for both metals. Palladium was down 4.8% at $1,470.79, a more than two-week low.

Business

UK Budget Deficit for 2025/26 Narrows to Six-year Low

Skyscrapers in London's financial district (Reuters)
Skyscrapers in London's financial district (Reuters)
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UK Budget Deficit for 2025/26 Narrows to Six-year Low

Skyscrapers in London's financial district (Reuters)
Skyscrapers in London's financial district (Reuters)

Britain's budget deficit for the last financial year narrowed to a six-year low as a percentage of economic output although borrowing for March alone exceeded forecasts, official data showed on Thursday.

The Office for National Statistics reported 132.0 billion pounds ($178.1 billion) of public sector net borrowing in the 2025/26 financial year that ⁠ended in March.

That ⁠was 0.7 billion pounds less than the most recent forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility and down from 151.9 billion pounds in 2024/25.

Equivalent to 4.3% of ⁠economic output - in line with the OBR prediction - the deficit was the smallest since the 2019/20 financial year, which ended just as the response to the COVID-19 pandemic caused debt to soar.

Debt interest spending in 2025/26 was 97.6 billion pounds, up from 85.4 billion pounds a year ⁠previously ⁠and marking the second-highest figure in cash terms since 2022/23, when inflation soared after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Last week, the International Monetary Fund cut Britain's economic growth forecasts for 2026 by more than for any other Group of Seven nation due to the country's exposure to higher energy prices with its heavy use of natural gas.

"A more stagflationary backdrop is forecast to take shape, with speculation already building about the impact of weaker growth on the Chancellor's headroom," Nabil Taleb, economist at PwC UK, said, referring to Reeves' ability to meet her borrowing target.

"Recent moves in bond markets, with gilt yields briefly touching 5% for the first time since 2008 before easing, also highlight the UK's vulnerability to uncertainty."

In March alone, the ONS reported public sector net borrowing of 12.6 billion pounds. Economists polled by Reuters had a median forecast of a 10.3 billion-pound deficit for the month.

Business

Saudi Arabia, Philippines to Join JPMorgan Emerging Market Bond Index in 2027

FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the JPMorgan Chase & Co. New York Head Quarters in Manhattan, New York City, US, June 30, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the JPMorgan Chase & Co. New York Head Quarters in Manhattan, New York City, US, June 30, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
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Saudi Arabia, Philippines to Join JPMorgan Emerging Market Bond Index in 2027

FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the JPMorgan Chase & Co. New York Head Quarters in Manhattan, New York City, US, June 30, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the JPMorgan Chase & Co. New York Head Quarters in Manhattan, New York City, US, June 30, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

J.P. Morgan said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia and the Philippines will be added to its local currency emerging market debt index from January 29 next year.

The inclusion will cover Saudi riyal-denominated sovereign sukuk and Philippine peso-denominated government bonds, both entering the widely tracked GBI-EM ⁠index series.

Their weights ⁠will be introduced gradually, with Saudi Arabia expected to reach 2.52% and the Philippines 1.78% once fully phased in.

The update is part ⁠of a broader index adjustment, which will lower the "Country Cap" - the maximum weight, or share, any single country can hold in the "diversified" index - to 9% from 10%.

As a result, major markets including China, India, Mexico, Malaysia, and Indonesia will see their ⁠weight ⁠reduced to the new limit.

Based on current eligibility criteria, about eight Saudi sovereign sukuk with a combined value of roughly $69 billion could be included, JPMorgan said.

For the Philippines, nine eligible government bonds with a combined value of around $49 billion are under consideration.