Markets Today: Gold Hits Fresh All-Time Highs, Euro Area Inflation Edges Up & DAX Tumbles 1.3% Eyeing Support at the 100-day MA

[Ben Graham]

Asia Market Wrap - Nikkei Arrests Two-Day Slide

Most Read: GBP/USD Technical: Sterling torpedoed by spike in 30-year gilt yield, watch the 1.3315/3280 key support

The Asian session saw muted trade this morning as market participants waited for the U.S. markets on Wall Street to open after their long holiday weekend.

In Japan, the Nikkei recovered after two successive days of losses. Investor confidence was boosted by two main factors: the hope that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon, and strong sales reports from Japanese department stores.

It was an up-and-down day of trading. The Nikkei was down at one point, but it recovered to finish the day with a small gain of 0.3%. Another major Japanese stock index, the Topix, had an even better day, rising by 0.6%.

Market participants are looking to the U.S. for direction, especially since September has often been a weak month for stocks. Similarly, markets across Asia were mixed, going up and down by small amounts without any clear trend.

The biggest activity in the Asian session came from Gold where the precious metal printed a fresh all-time high. Gold sailed past $3,500 per ounce to a high of $3508.5/oz before settling and then falling back to trade at $3476/oz at the time of writing.

For more on Gold prices, read Gold (XAU/USD) Technical: Bullish acceleration supported rising implied volatility.

European Open - European Stocks Retreat

Long-term bond yields in Britain and France reached their highest levels in more than ten years. This happened because investors are increasingly worried about the financial situation of countries worldwide.

When bond yields go up, their prices go down. The yields on very long-term bonds, like 30-year ones, have been rising globally. Investors are concerned about the large amount of debt in countries from Japan to the United States, but Britain and France are especially in the spotlight.

This concern also hurt the stock market. Europe's main stock index, the Stoxx 600, dropped by 0.6%, with real estate stocks that are sensitive to interest rates falling by almost 2%. The FTSE and DAX stock indexes also went down in early trading, by 0.3% and 1.14%, respectively.

On the FX front, the British pound dropped more than 1% against the dollar to 1.3402, making it the weakest it's been against the euro in almost a month. The U.S. dollar went up by 0.86% against the Japanese yen, reaching 148.47 yen.

The euro also strengthened against both the pound and the yen, rising by 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively. Overall, the dollar's value increased by 0.7% against a group of other major currencies.

Currency Power Balance

Source: OANDA Labs

Oil prices increased on Tuesday. This was due to growing concerns that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine could disrupt oil supplies. The market was also trying to figure out if new U.S. jobs data would be weak enough to cause the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.

Brent crude oil went up by $1.12, or 1.6%, to $69.27 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose by $1.77, or 2.77%, to $65.78 a barrel.

For a more in depth and technical look at Oil, read WTI Oil Rallies 1% and Eyes Break of Key Confluence Level. Could a Rally to $70/Barrel Finally Materialize?

Eurozone Inflation Data

In August 2025, consumer prices in the Euro area went up by 2.1%, which was a bit more than what was expected and also a little higher than July's rate. This was mainly due to food prices, which increased by 5.5%, and energy costs, which didn't drop as much as they did the month before.

At the same time, the cost of services went up a little less, and prices for things like processed food, alcohol, and tobacco also rose at a slightly slower rate. The cost of non-energy industrial goods stayed the same. The core inflation rate, which doesn't include prices for energy, food, alcohol, and tobacco, stayed at 2.3%—its lowest since January 2022.

Economic Data Releases and Final Thoughts

Looking at the economic calendar, the European session will be quiet moving forward after Euro Area inflation data was released..

The US session will bring some high impact data in the form of PMI data. Service data is always important for the US as it is largely a service driven economy.

Moving forward, sentiment will be key and likely hinge on any news on the geopolitical front ahead of US jobs data this week.

For all market-moving economic releases and events, see the MarketPulse Economic Calendar. (click to enlarge)

Chart of the Day - DAX Index

From a technical standpoint, the DAX Index has continued its slide after finding resistance at the confluence area around the 24000 handle.

The Index is down around 1.3% on the day and now testing the 100-day MA which rests at the 23700 handle. Failure to hold here could see the index extend its losses toward the swing low at 23384 before the 23212 handle comes back into focus.

A move higher here will first need to break above the 24000 handle and the 20 and 50 day MAs resting just above.

If the DAX is able to clear those hurdles, then a retest of the top of the bull flag pattern may materialize.

DAX Daily Chart, September 1. 2025

Source: TradingView.com (click to enlarge)

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