The euro continued to trade below the $ 1.18 mark on Friday. In the evening, the common currency cost 1.1733 dollars, 0.3 percent less compared to the night before. The interest rate decision by the US Federal Reserve, which is planned for next week, is casting long shadows. In view of the economic recovery in the USA, the exit from crisis mode is imminent. Investors are wondering when exactly Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will give the signal to cut back the billion-dollar purchases of government bonds and mortgage securities.
The oil price fell on the commodity market. In the evening a barrel (159 liters) of North Sea Brent cost $ 75.34. That was 0.4 percent less than the day before. Despite the slight losses, oil prices are near their highest levels since early August. Price support comes from the supply side: Since numerous production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico are still idle due to the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, US production is lagging behind demand. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), even the increasing supply of the Opec + oil network cannot compensate for the shortage at present.
The price of iron ore has more than halved since peaking in May and now threatens to drop below $ 100 a ton. On Friday it was quoted at $ 102.81. China’s measures to clean up the industrial sector contributed significantly to the sharp slump, accompanied by a sharp downturn in the country’s real estate sector. Iron ore is thus an outlier in a general raw material boom, for example in the case of aluminum, gas and coal. On the one hand, the drop in prices relieves the burden on steel producers, but it is a setback for mining companies.