The Federal Reserve's May meeting minutes showed that Fed members were disappointed by the lack of progress in fighting inflation, which remains well above the 2% target after a long period of tightening. They concluded achieving the inflation goal would take longer than previously expected, leading some members to mention their willingness for further policy tightening if inflation risks materialise. However, the minutes noted that medium- and longer-term inflation forecasts remained anchored. Overall, the hawkish tone underscores the Fed's firm commitment to ramp up inflation control through a data-dependent approach, leaving the door open for an additional hike if price pressures fail to moderate convincingly in the coming months.

EQUITY

Wall Street stayed rangebound as investors analysed the minutes from the Federal Reserve's recent meeting. However, Nvidia's shares rose approximately 6% after the closing bell after results, announcing a ten-for-one stock split and a 150% increase in its quarterly cash dividend. In the opposite direction, Target slid 8.03% after missing estimates, while Lululemon dropped 7% following the departure of its Chief Product Officer.

GOLD

Gold prices declined for the third session, primarily driven by hawkish minutes from the Fed. These minutes indicated that some officials were inclined to raise interest rates further, contrary to market expectations. Higher interest rates tend to diminish the appeal of non-yielding assets like gold by increasing the opportunity cost of holding them. However, the medium- to long-term outlook for gold remains constructive, contingent upon the Fed's next move.

OIL

Oil prices declined for the fourth consecutive session, mainly driven by U.S. oil inventory build-ups, although the death of Iran's president, which is expected to be a geopolitical risk, seemed to have little immediate effect on conditions in the Middle East, leading traders to remove risk premiums from oil prices. Faltering trade between the U.S. and China further increases demand anxiety, with the U.S. banning China's EV while China banning 12 U.S. companies, its senior executives, along with freezing their assets.

CURRENCY

The greenback has been on a streak since last week and has further gained against major currencies following the release of FOMC minutes that support the case for higher rates for longer. The New Zealand dollar also rallied after data showed an unexpected rise in retail sales, adding to hawkish signals from the central bank. Sterling jumped to a one-month high against the dollar, boosted by higher inflation data and the announcement of a national election in July.