In December, France’s HCOB Manufacturing PMI was recorded at 50.7, slightly higher than the forecast of 50.6. This reading indicates a modest expansion in the manufacturing sector, reflecting slight optimism.<\/p>\n
The US Dollar showed a mild recovery, prompting the EUR\/USD to retreat towards 1.1700. Trading conditions remained thin due to the New Year holiday, leading to subdued volatility in currency pairs like GBP\/USD, which stabilised near 1.3450.<\/p>\n
Gold prices climbed more than 1.5% to approach $4,400 in response to expectations of dovish Fed policies and ongoing geopolitical risks. Similarly, Cardano saw positive momentum, trading above $0.36, with technical indicators suggesting potential for further increases.<\/p>\n
The economic outlook for advanced countries in 2026 appears promising, with hopes for continued robust performance. In the crypto market, 2025 was marked by volatility, but regulatory changes and advancements like Digital Asset Treasuries have been positive catalysts.<\/p>\n
Various brokers are recommended for trading in 2026, with specific brokers highlighted for forex, CFDs, and other assets. Caution is advised when investing, and thorough research is encouraged given the inherent risks of market investment.<\/p>\n
The French manufacturing data for December 2025 provides a glimmer of hope, showing slight expansion just above the 50.7 mark. However, this positive sign is not reflected in the EUR\/USD, which is testing one-week lows near 1.1700. We view this as a sign that the market needs more convincing data from the broader Eurozone before committing to a stronger euro.<\/p>\n
With trading volumes still thin after the New Year holiday, we don’t expect major directional moves just yet. Given the weak Eurozone data mentioned alongside the French report, consider buying put options on EUR\/USD to hedge against a further slide below 1.1700. This is especially true if the European Central Bank remains more cautious than the Federal Reserve in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n
Gold is the asset showing clear momentum, pushing towards $4,400 an ounce as we start the year. This strength is built on growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will adopt a more dovish policy, a trend that makes non-yielding gold more attractive. This view is supported by robust central bank buying, which we saw set records back in 2025 with over 800 metric tons purchased through the third quarter alone.<\/p>\n
For traders looking to capitalize on this trend, buying call options on XAU\/USD seems prudent. Implied volatility is relatively subdued in this early-year quiet period, making options an attractive way to gain upside exposure. Geopolitical risks, which have been a persistent theme, provide an additional tailwind for gold prices.<\/p>\n
Similar to the euro, the British pound is struggling to find its footing, stabilizing around 1.3450 without strong conviction. The general economic outlook for 2026 is positive, but these currency markets are showing that the year may have a cautious start. Traders should remain wary of sharp, unexpected moves as full market participation has not yet returned.<\/p>\n
Create your live VT Markets account<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0start trading<\/a>\u00a0now. <\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" France\u2019s PMI exceeds forecasts; USD rebounds; gold tops $4,400; crypto gains; 2026 outlook remains optimistic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":16983,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-live-updates"],"acf":{"acf_article_selection_author":null},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/62"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38129\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}