Gold Prices Fall Amid Rate Jitters; Copper Steady as China Stimulus Eyed 
Dow Hits 50,000 as U.S. Stocks Stage Strong Rebound Amid AI Volatility 
Thailand Inflation Remains Negative for 10th Straight Month in January 
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran 
Australia’s December Trade Surplus Expands but Falls Short of Expectations 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Japanese Pharmaceutical Stocks Slide as TrumpRx.gov Launch Sparks Market Concerns 
Australian government bonds jumped during Asian session of the first trading day of the week Monday amid a muted trading session that witnessed data of little economic significance ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) Assistant Governor Christopher Kent’s speech, scheduled to be held today at 22:30GMT.
The yield on Australia’s benchmark 10-year note, which moves inversely to its price, slumped 2-1/2 basis points to 1.335 percent, the yield on the long-term 30-year bond also suffered 2-1/2 basis points to 1.978 percent and the yield on short-term 2-year traded nearly 1 basis point down at 0.954 percent by 05:00GMT.
Asia looks set to start the week on a soft tone amid heightened tensions in the Persian Gulf (after Iran seized a British oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz) as well as weak leads from US financial markets on Friday, OCBC Treasury Research reported.
While market players are anticipating the Fed to trim interest rates on July 30, nevertheless the walking back of 50bp rate cut expectations, coupled with the blackout for Fed speeches in the run-up to FOMC, may see attention turning to US economic data releases and the ongoing earnings season (with Amazon.com, Alphabet, Unilever, Caterpillar, Coca-Cola, McDonalds and Boeing due), the report added.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 index remained tad 0.05 percent higher at 6,619.50 by 05:05GMT.
