Precious metals led the tape into the London close, with silver the standout mover of the session.
Metals
Silver jumped 4.31% to $58.77, its sharpest daily move on the board and now up 25.6% on the year. Gold climbed 1.7% to $4,077.68, while platinum added 2.35% to $1,631.73.
The metals complex moved in lockstep with a broader appetite for risk, leaving the group firmly in the green.
Equities
European indices closed higher across the board. The Euro Stoxx 50 rose 1.65% to 6,295.28, the DAX 40 added 1.44% to 25,054.70, and the FTSE 100 gained 1.29% to 10,595.87. Spain’s IBEX 35 and France’s CAC 40 rose 1.28% and 1.25% respectively.
The session’s headline equity move came from Tokyo, where the Nikkei 225 surged 3.55% to 67,078.30 β now up 49.8% year-on-year. US benchmarks followed higher, with the Nasdaq 100 up 1.77% and the S&P 500 up 0.76%, though both remain lower on the week.
Energy and Crypto
Crude extended its recent run. US Oil rose 2.36% to $84.19 and Brent added 2.05% to $89.03, leaving both up more than 5% on the week and roughly a third higher over the year.
Crypto held a firmer tone. Polkadot led with a 3.28% gain, XRP rose 3.05% to $1.1448, and Bitcoin added 1.64% to $66,270. Litecoin was the notable laggard, slipping 0.87%.
Currencies
Sterling was the soft spot among majors, with GBP/USD down 0.44% to 1.3371 and GBP/NOK off 0.89% β the day’s biggest FX decliner. The dollar firmed against the yen, USD/JPY rising 0.42% to 163.17, while the rand strengthened, pushing USD/ZAR down 0.73%.
The Norwegian krone drew broad support, with EUR/NOK and USD/NOK both lower alongside the stronger crude backdrop. Silver and the energy complex remain the session’s clearest theme heading into the US close.
