
Dollar gains ground against major peers after better-than-expected US jobs data
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the central bank plans to wait for more data before it starts monetary policy easing, but he didn't rule out a July start. Powell spoke at a central banking conference in Portugal.
The dollar pared losses against the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc after Labor Department data showed that job openings rose 374,000 to 7.769 million in May.
The dollar weakened 0.33 per cent to 143.53 against the yen and was down 0.09 per cent to 0.7925 versus the Swiss franc, compared with a drop of 0.46 per cent and 0.28 per cent respectively before the data. The euro was last down 0.06 per cent at $1.178150 after being up 0.05 per cent earlier in the day.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.09 per cent at 96.84 after being down 0.05 per cent to 96.71.
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Business Times
an hour ago
- Business Times
Gold prices ease ahead of US data as investors weigh Fed rate stance
[BENGALURU] Gold prices edged lower on Wednesday (Jul 2) as investors awaited US payroll data and assessed Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell's cautious stance on rate cuts, although a weaker US dollar helped limit losses for greenback-priced bullion. Spot gold was down 0.2 per cent at US$3,330.68 per ounce, as at 0217 GMT, while US gold futures fell 0.3 per cent to US$3,340.60. The US dollar index weakened to its lowest point in more than three years, making bullion more affordable for holders of other currencies. 'Gold prices are consolidating after posting the strongest gains in two weeks. The overall trend bias continues to favour the upside for now,' said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive, adding Fed policy expectations are taking centre stage at the moment. Powell reiterated that the US central bank plans to 'wait and learn more' about the impact of tariffs on inflation before lowering interest rates, again setting aside US President Donald Trump's demands for immediate and deep rate cuts. US job openings unexpectedly increased in May, but a decline in hiring added to signs that the labour market had shifted into lower gear amid uncertainty over the Trump administration's tariffs on imports. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Investors are now awaiting US ADP employment data, due later in the day, and nonfarm payroll (NFP) figures on Thursday for further insights into labour market conditions. 'The biggest risk for gold is an unexpectedly strong (NFP) result, but that seems rather unlikely to happen,' Spivak said. Meanwhile, US Senate Republicans narrowly passed Trump's tax-and-spending bill on Tuesday, a package cutting taxes, reducing social safety net programmes, and boosting military spending, while adding US$3.3 trillion to the national debt. Trump expressed optimism on Tuesday about a potential trade deal with India but was sceptical about reaching a similar agreement with Japan. He added that he was not considering an extension of the Jul 9 deadline for countries to negotiate trade deals. Spot silver edged down 0.1 per cent to US$36.01 per ounce, platinum fell 0.4 per cent to US$1,344.91, while palladium gained 0.4 per cent to US$1,104.92. REUTERS


CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
Intel's new CEO explores big shift in chip manufacturing business
SAN FRANCISCO: Intel's new chief executive is exploring a big change to its contract manufacturing business to win major customers, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters, in a potentially expensive shift from his predecessor's plans. If implemented, the new strategy for what Intel calls its "foundry" business would entail no longer marketing certain chipmaking technology, which the company had long developed, to external customers, the people said. Since taking the company's helm in March, CEO Lip-Bu Tan has moved fast to cut costs and find a new path to revive the ailing US chipmaker. By June, he started voicing that a manufacturing process that prior CEO Pat Gelsinger bet heavily on, known as 18A, was losing its appeal to new customers, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. To put aside external sales of 18A and its variant 18A-P, manufacturing processes that have cost Intel billions of dollars to develop, the company would have to take a write-off, one of the people familiar with the matter said. Industry analysts contacted by Reuters said such a charge could amount to a loss of hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars. Intel declined to comment on such "hypothetical scenarios or market speculation". It said the lead customer for 18A has long been Intel itself, and it aims to ramp production of its "Panther Lake" laptop chips later in 2025, which it called the most advanced processors ever designed and manufactured in the United States. Persuading outside clients to use Intel's factories remains key to its future. As its 18A fabrication process faced delays, rival TSMC's N2 technology has been on track for production. Tan's preliminary answer to this challenge: focus more resources on 14A, a next-generation chipmaking process where Intel expects to have advantages over Taiwan's TSMC, the two sources said. The move is part of a play for big customers like Apple and Nvidia, which currently pay TSMC to manufacture their chips. Tan has tasked the company with teeing up options for discussion with Intel's board when it meets as early as this month, including whether to stop marketing 18A to new clients, one of the two sources said. The board might not reach a decision on 18A until a subsequent autumn meeting in light of the matter's complexity and the enormous money at stake, the person said. Intel declined to comment on what it called rumour. In a statement, it said: "Lip-Bu and the executive team are committed to strengthening our roadmap, building trust with our customers, and improving our financial position for the future. We have identified clear areas of focus and will take actions needed to turn the business around." Last year was Intel's first unprofitable year since 1986. It posted a net loss attributable to the company of US$18.8 billion for 2024. The Intel chief executive's deliberations show the enormous risks - and costs - under consideration to move the storied U.S. chipmaker back onto solid footing. Like Gelsinger, Tan inherited a company that had lost its manufacturing edge and fell behind on crucial technology waves of the past two decades: mobile computing and artificial intelligence. The company is targeting high-volume production later this year for 18A with its internal chips, which are widely expected to arrive ahead of external customer orders. Meanwhile, delivering 14A in time to win major contracts is by no means certain, and Intel could choose to stick with its existing plans for 18A, one of the sources said. Intel is tailoring 14A to key clients' needs to make it successful, the company said. AMAZON AND MICROSOFT ON 18A Tan's review of whether to focus clients on 14A involves the contract chipmaking portion of Intel, or foundry, which makes chips for external customers. Regardless of a board decision, Intel will make chips via 18A in cases where its plans are already in motion, the people familiar with the matter said. This includes using 18A for Intel's in-house chips that it already designed for that manufacturing process, the people said. Intel also will produce a relatively small volume of chips that it has guaranteed for and Microsoft via 18A, with deadlines that make it unrealistic to wait for the development of 14A. Amazon and Microsoft did not immediately comment on the matter. Intel said it will deliver on its customer commitments. Tan's overall strategy for Intel remains nascent. So far, he has updated his leadership team, bringing in new engineering talent, and he has worked to shrink what he considered bloated and slow-moving middle management. Shifting away from selling 18A to foundry customers would represent one of his biggest moves yet. The 18A manufacturing process includes a novel method of delivering energy to chips and a new type of transistor. Together, these enhancements were meant to let Intel match or exceed TSMC's capabilities, Intel executives have previously said. However, according to some industry analysts, the 18A process is roughly equivalent to TSMC's so-called N3 manufacturing technology, which went into high-volume production in late 2022. If Intel follows Tan's lead, the company would focus its foundry employees, design partners and new customers on 14A, where it hopes for a better chance to compete against TSMC.


CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
US, Japan, India, Australia pledge mineral cooperation on China jitters
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