The market continues to experience considerable volatility during the European trading session on Wednesday (December 17, 2025). From a fundamental perspective, there have been no significant changes. Market movements remain influenced by the mixed results of the U.S. non-farm payrolls (NFP).
In October, the NFP recorded a decline of 105,000 jobs, a stark contrast to the forecast of 55,000 and a prior period number of 108,000. Conversely, the NFP for November showed an increase of 64,000 jobs, exceeding the forecast of 25,000. This combination of data reflects uncertainty in the direction of the U.S. labor market in the short term.
Disyorkan
Disyorkan
Disyorkan
Disyorkan
On another note, market optimism regarding potential monetary policy easing by the Federal Reserve (The Fed) is gradually strengthening. The unemployment rate in the U.S. rose from 4.4% to 4.6% in November, marking the highest level since 2021. This rise reinforces indications of early structural weakening in the U.S. labor market and raises expectations that The Fed may cut interest rates at least twice in 2026.
These sentiments are expected to continue affecting global asset price movements during the U.S. trading session.
EMAS
Gold prices (XAUUSD) surged by $40.52 or 405 pips, reaching $4,342.40 per troy ounce, before correcting and trading around the $4,320 level during the European session.
Despite this short-term correction, Gold maintains robust support driven by increasing optimism that The Fed may implement more aggressive interest rate cuts in 2026. The outlook for monetary policy easing remains a primary catalyst for interest in safe-haven assets.
In this context, positive sentiment may encourage Gold to continue its upward trajectory in tonight’s trading, though volatility should still be anticipated.
MINYAK
Oil prices (CLS10) rose by $1.49 to $56.66 per barrel during the European trading session. This increase was triggered by President Donald Trump’s recent directive to block sanctioned tankers from entering or exiting Venezuela.
This action alleviates oversupply concerns given that Venezuela is one of the countries with the largest oil reserves in the world and a major oil exporter. These distribution restrictions could potentially decrease global oil supply in the short term.
This sentiment may still offer opportunities for Oil prices to continue rising during the U.S. session.
EURUSD
The EURUSD pair weakened by 413 points or 41 pips to 1.17031 during the European trading session. The pressure came from the release of Germany’s December Ifo business climate index, which recorded 87.6, below the forecast of 88.5 and last month’s figure of 88.1.
This decline in the index reflects deteriorating business sentiment in Germany and indicates a slowdown in the economy of the Eurozone’s largest country. The pressure on EURUSD intensified as the dollar attempted to rebound after the NFP data for November came in above expectations.
This sentiment may continue to weigh on the EURUSD movement during the U.S. session.
GBPUSD
The GBPUSD pair plummeted 1.024 points or 102 pips to 1.33114 during the European trading session. This sharp decline was driven by the release of UK inflation data that fell short of expectations. The UK inflation rate (year-on-year, November) was recorded at 3.2%, below the forecast of 3.4% and the previous month’s 3.6%. Meanwhile, core inflation (year-on-year, November) in the UK also fell to 3.2%, lower than the forecast of 3.3% and the prior figure of 3.4%. This data indicates a more profound economic slowdown in the UK than the market anticipated.
These conditions create opportunities for the Bank of England (BoE) to consider lowering interest rates this Thursday, meaning that negative sentiment may continue to pressure GBPUSD, especially as the U.S. dollar seeks to strengthen.
USDJPY
The USDJPY surged by 958 points or 95.8 pips to 155.597 during the European trading session. This increase was driven by a rally in the U.S. dollar following NFP data for November that surpassed market expectations.
However, the strength of this pair is limited by positive sentiment towards the yen, as prospects for the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to raise interest rates this week improve, buoyed by strengthening export data from Japan.
The contrasting sentiments could lead to continued volatility in USDJPY movements, with a tendency to extend gains during the U.S. session.
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq rose by 147 index points to 25,225 during the European trading session. This increase was fueled by enhanced market optimism that The Fed will cut interest rates at least twice next year, imparting a positive sentiment for risk assets.
In the U.S. session, the Nasdaq remains poised to continue its upward trend as long as expectations for monetary policy easing remain intact.
