Sentiment across markets was rattled as the Fed and ECB appeared forceful in their resolve to hike interest rates to tame inflation. Growth concerns re-emerged, amidst the unabated geopolitical crisis in eastern Europe and the pressures of a tight monetary policy.
Asian benchmarks capitulated to the might of the lingering anxiety of interest rate hardening. European markets are trading lower. American stock futures indicate nervousness in investor sentiment.
The Dollar Index touched a fresh 2-year high. Bond yields responded to the hawkish Fed comments with a fresh surge. Crude prices retreated, as the prospect of higher interest rates exacerbated global recovery and oil demand concerns, that were triggered by the lockdowns in China. A strong Dollar and the surging bond yields took away the bullion's sheen. Cryptocurrencies plunged again, fearing increase in opportunity cost of holding non-interest-bearing cryptos.
Here is a snapshot of the world markets at this hour across stocks, currencies, bonds, commodities and cryptocurrencies.
Stock Indexes:
DJIA (US30) at 34,720.70, down 0.21% S&P 500 (US500) at 4,386.70 down 0.16% Germany's DAX at 14,311.29, down 1.32% U.K.'s FTSE 100 at 7,581.03, down 0.62% France's CAC 40 at 6,631.66, down 1.24% Euro Stoxx 50 at 3,875.05, down 1.35% Japan's Nikkei 225 at 27,105.26, down 1.63% Australia's S&P ASX 200 at 7,473.30, down 1.57% China's Shanghai Composite at 3,086.92, up 0.23% Hong Kong's Hang Seng at 20,638.52, down 0.21%
Currencies:
EURUSD at 1.0804, down 0.30%GBPUSD at 1.2891 down 1.05%USDJPY at 128.40, up 0.01%AUDUSD at 0.7307, down 0.88%USDCAD at 1.2670, up 0.74%Dollar Index at 101.05, up 0.47%
Ten-Year Govt Bond Yields:
U.S. at 2.947%, up 1.04% Germany at 0.9490%, up 2.82%France at 1.393%, up 0.47%U.K. at 2.0175%, up 0.27%Japan at 0.243%, down 1.02%
Commodities:
Crude Oil WTI Futures (Jun) at $101.55, down 2.16%Brent Oil Futures (Jun) at $106.13, down 2.03%Gold Futures (Jun) at $1,944.50, down 0.19%
Cryptocurrencies:
Bitcoin at $40,431.59, down 3.62%Ethereum at $3,004.56, down 3.09%BNB at $407.92, down 3.19% XRP at $0.7284, down 2.87%Solana at $101.85, down 4.90%
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Forex News
May 15, 2026 15:25 ET Apart from the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair, the main news on the economics front this week included key price data from the U.S. and the first quarter economic growth figures from major economies. Both consumer prices and producer costs have started to reflect the effect of supply shocks due to the Middle East conflict. In Europe, GDP data was in focus, while inflation data from China dominated the news flow in Asia.