Gold above $2,100 on back of cautious market approach

Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, concerns about China's slowing economic growth, and recent data from the US are weighing on investor sentiment, leading to a cautious approach towards riskier assets.

Stock Market

On Wall Street, stock market indices took a breather yesterday after reaching record highs last week. Among them, the Nasdaq witnessed the most significant decline. Today in the Asian-Pacific region, markets displayed mixed results. Chinese indices showed stronger performance, trending upwards despite a slight dip in China's private services PMI index from 52.7 to 52.5 in February.

As the European day begins, futures indicate a mostly lower opening for the region's session.

In the commodities market

Crude oil prices dipped further, extending their downtrend from yesterday. Crude oil now hovers near the crucial support level of $78 per barrel. Analysts are closely monitoring this level, anticipating a potential correction if it breaks. Meanwhile, in the precious metals market, a slight decline is observed today after yesterday's bullish momentum. Gold, however, remains an exception, still trading higher after reaching its first daily close above $2,100 yesterday.

In currencies market

Today sees various currency pairs with option expiries, with particular attention on the EUR/USD pair due to its high volume. The US Dollar (USD) concluded the week with its second consecutive decline, a trend that persisted until Friday's trading session came to a close. However, both the USD and EUR show signs of recovery today, while the AUD and NZD struggle to keep pace