Oil prices focus on trade tensions between Europe and the United States, and the situation in Greenland stimulates safe-haven demand; gold prices approach the 4,700 mark

Basic News

On Tuesday (January 20, Beijing time), spot gold was trading around US$4,670.60 per ounce. The price of gold hit a record high on Monday to US$4,690.46 per ounce, mainly affected by US President Trump’s www.xmtraders.comments on the Greenland dispute. Safe-haven demand spurred by warnings of additional tariffs on several European countries; U.S. crude oil traded around $59.36 per barrel. Oil prices were basically stable on Monday. Civil unrest in Iran subsided, reducing the risk of a U.S. military strike against the major oil producer and disrupting its supply. Market attention then turned to trade tensions between Europe and the United States that may affect demand.

Stock Market

U.S. stocks were closed on Monday, but U.S. President Trump threatened to impose tariffs on several European countries, triggering a chain reaction in global financial markets. European stock markets fell significantly, with the European Stoxx 600 index falling by more than 1%, and trade-sensitive automobile and luxury goods sectors (such as BMW and LVMH) were among the top decliners.

U.S. stock index futures also fell in response, while European defense stocks bucked the trend and rose. Morgan Stanley said that the extent to which www.xmtraders.companies are affected by U.S. tariffs varies, and that tariffs related to Greenland will affect the revenue of www.xmtraders.companies in the MSCI Europe index by about 2.2%. Analysts at Morgan Stanley estimate that the impact will be concentrated on www.xmtraders.companies in the luxury goods, automotive and pharmaceutical industries, with Denmark being the European country most affected by higher U.S. tariffs.

Deutsche Bank’s George Saravelos believes that European countries may reduce their huge holdings of U.S. assets. Europe’s $8 trillion in U.S. stocks and bonds is equivalent to the size of the world.Nearly double the www.xmtraders.combined holdings of other countries and regions in the world. Saravelos said: "In an environment where the geoeconomic stability of the Western Alliance has been fundamentally impacted, it is not clear why Europeans would still be willing to play this role."

Gold Market

Spot gold and silver both hit record highs on Monday, mainly driven by safe-haven demand triggered by U.S. President Trump's warning of additional tariffs on several European countries in the Greenland dispute. Spot gold rose 1.7% to $4,672.49 an ounce, hitting an intraday record high of $4,690.46 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for February delivery rose 1.8% to $4,677.70 an ounce. Spot silver performed even more strongly, rising 5%. It once again hit a record high of $94.68 on Tuesday morning, with a cumulative increase of nearly 32% this year.

This rise is directly due to geopolitical and trade risks. Trump previously threatened to impose tariffs on eight European countries including Denmark, Sweden, France, and Germany until the United States is allowed to purchase Greenland. Linh Tran, senior market analyst at XS, pointed out: "When institutional and policy risks reappear, the market tends to react quickly and reallocate safe-haven assets, with gold becoming the first choice again."

At the same time, the U.S. dollar index fell under pressure due to trade war risks, further enhancing the appeal of safe-haven assets such as gold. In addition, recent statements by Federal Reserve officials that they are "ready to cut interest rates again if necessary" and market expectations for at least two interest rate cuts during the year have also provided macro support for precious metals.

Oil Market

Oil prices were basically stable on Monday as domestic unrest in Iran subsided, reducing the risk of a U.S. military strike against the major oil producer and disrupting its supply. Market attention then turned to trade tensions between Europe and the United States that may affect demand.

Brent crude oil rose slightly by 0.02% to US$64.14 per barrel; US crude oil reported US$59.44 per barrel, the same as the settlement price of the previous trading day. Due to a public holiday in the United States, market trading activities were relatively light that day.

On the one hand, geopolitical risks are shifting. Iran has quelled protests with a crackdown while U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to backtrack on previous threats to intervene, removing some of the supply risk premium that had supported oil prices. On the other hand, a new focus emerges. Market attention has turned to the escalation of EU-US relations over the Greenland sovereignty dispute. Trump threatened to impose tariffs on many European countries, and the EU said it was ready to retaliate and planned to hold an emergency summit. Analysts pointed out that any expansion of the trade war could damage oil demand prospects.

In addition, the northern hemisphere is expected to usher in colder weather, which has intensified the market's concerns about tight distillate supply and provided some support for oil prices.

Foreign Market

The U.S. dollar index fell on Monday. U.S. President Trump’s new round of tariff threats against Europe over the Greenland issue made the market nervous. Investors turned to safe-haven currencies such as the Swiss franc, triggering widespread safe-haven transactions.

Trump announced over the weekend that he will impose a 10% tariff on goods from eight European countries including Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and France starting from February 1 until the United States is allowed to purchase Greenland. In response, EU leaders are stepping up efforts to dissuade them and prepare countermeasures.

The market initially reacted by selling the dollar, while European currencies rebounded after falling overnight. EUR/USD rose 0.3% to 1.1638, while GBP/USD rose 0.34% to 1.342. The Swiss franc, a typical safe-haven currency, performed strongly, with USD/CHF falling 0.7% to 0.797, the largest one-day gain in a month. USD/JPY also fell 0.14% to 157.9.

Analysts are divided on the outlook for the dollar. Strategists at Société Générale believe that if the trade war escalates, the damage to Europe will be greater than that of the United States, and the U.S. dollar may not be damaged. Increased tensions may even prompt funds to flow back into the U.S. dollar.

International News

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell plans to attend a U.S. Supreme Court hearing on Wednesday regarding President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, a person familiar with the matter said. In October, the Supreme Court refused to allow Trump to summarily fire Cook while he filed a lawsuit to keep his job. The ruling means Cook can remain in office, at least until the Supreme Court hears oral arguments and rules this week. Trump ordered Cook fired in late August over unsubstantiated mortgage fraud allegations, which he has denied. Fed watchers and legal analysts say the outcome of the case will have far-reaching consequences for the president's ability to fire Fed governors and, by extension, the central bank's ability to set interest rates without political interference.

Vujcic will serve as deputy president of the European Central Bank, a breakthrough in Eastern Europe

Boris Vujcic, governor of the Croatian Central Bank, is set to become the next deputy president of the European Central Bank, becoming the first Eastern European to serve on the executive board of the institution. Eurogroup President Kyriakos Pierrakakis said the 61-year-old policymaker won the support of euro zone finance ministers on Monday to succeed Luis de Guindos, who will leave at the end of May. "We are proceeding as planned, Boris Vujcic will take up his new role at the European Central Bank on June 1," Pierrakakis, who also serves as Greece's finance minister, told reporters in Brussels. Before then, he will be heard by the European Parliament and the ECB's Governing Council will also be consulted. EU leaders have the final say on the appointment. EU leaders have traditionally followed Eurogroup votes. The decision was a breakthrough for Eastern Europe. Although the region currently accounts for a third of the 21 member states of the euro zone, no one has ever served on the ECB's executive board before.

The British Prime Minister called on the United States:The trade war does not serve the interests of any party

British Prime Minister Starmer delivered a speech to the nation on the 19th, saying that the trade war does not serve the interests of any party and that the United States' use of tariffs against its allies is "completely wrong." Starmer said any decision on Greenland's future status "depends entirely on the people of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark itself". He said that his focus at this stage is to ensure that "we do not fall into a trade war." Starmer also said Europe needs to "do more" in its own defense and security.

Norway and Sweden announced their readiness to participate in NATO's Arctic missions

On the 19th, after meeting with the Danish Defense Minister at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Norwegian Defense Minister Sandvik said that Norway would not refuse to participate in NATO military operations around Greenland. This was initiated at the request of Danish Defense Minister Poulsen. Sandvik said that political dialogue must be carried out between Denmark and the United States, and he hopes that the dialogue will be conducted in a constructive manner. Furthermore, NATO must continue its efforts to strengthen its presence in the Arctic. On the same day, Swedish Defense Minister Jonsson said after meeting with Danish Defense Minister Poulsen and others at NATO headquarters in Brussels that Sweden would not rule out participating in NATO missions in the Arctic region. Jonsson said: "I do not rule out this possibility at all. But the first step is to conduct reconnaissance missions with some other countries."

The Israeli army said it is fully prepared to deal with "multi-front threats"

On the 19th local time, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Zamir delivered a speech when inspecting the Israeli Homeland Defense www.xmtraders.command, saying that the Israeli army was fully prepared to deal with "multi-front threats." Zamir said that in the face of large-scale potential threats to Israel's homeland, the Israeli military is on high alert and has the ability to protect civilian lives in such attacks. Zamir said the Israeli military is ready to use "unprecedented" offensive capabilities to fight back any attempt to harm Israel. Zamir also said that the Israeli army has fully learned the lessons from the "12-day war" with Iran in June 2025. As part of the relevant strategic deployment, the Israeli military is currently preparing for a possible "emergency war".

Nearly 400 positions of the United Nations Development Program will be relocated from New York to Europe

On January 19, local time, the United Nations Development Program announced that it will reorganize some positions at its New York headquarters in the United States, and nearly 400 positions will be relocated to Europe. About three-quarters of these positions will be moved to Bonn, Germany, and the remaining positions will be moved to Madrid, Spain. The United Nations Development Program stated that this adjustment is part of an institutional reform aimed at adapting to changes in the current global financial and development environment, strengthening ties with host countries and partners, and improving its ability to support the world's most vulnerable people. After the adjustment is www.xmtraders.completed, the staff size of the United Nations Development Program in Bonn, Germany will exceed 400. Bonn is also the long-term home of the United Nations Volunteers. The United Nations Development Program expressed its gratitude to Germany and Spain for agreeing to accept relevant positions, saying that this move will further consolidate the cooperation between the two parties.make relationships. The United Nations Development Program stressed that New York will remain the agency’s global headquarters. Currently, the United Nations Development Program is working in about 170 countries and regions around the world, with a total of about 22,000 employees, the vast majority of whom work in front-line and regional agencies in various countries, and less than 7% of the staff are resident in the New York headquarters.

Domestic News

China’s domestic and foreign trade integration series of measures have benefited products worth 12.5 billion yuan from exports to domestic sales

On the 19th, we learned that the State Administration for Market Regulation has made great efforts to promote the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade, strengthened the connection between domestic and foreign certification systems, and guided local market supervision departments to provide assistance. A series of measures have benefited products worth 12.5 billion yuan from exports to domestic sales. The State Administration for Market Regulation has established a special working mechanism to guide www.xmtraders.compulsory product certification (CCC certification) implementation agencies to further optimize certification procedures, reduce certification costs, and shorten certification cycles. At the same time, CCC certification implementation agencies with relevant international certification qualifications are required to integrate domestic and foreign certification evaluation programs to build a one-stop service system. One testing and certification evaluation can ensure that enterprises obtain multiple domestic and foreign access qualifications simultaneously. In addition, the State Administration for Market Regulation requires local market supervision departments to guide the designated implementation agencies of www.xmtraders.compulsory product certification to open green fast access channels for enterprises, and for products that meet mandatory national standards and have been included in the scope of CCC certification, accelerate the speed of products obtaining CCC certification qualifications to enter the domestic market.

Beijing’s first robot professional title review will start in July this year

Recently, the Beijing Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau officially issued the "Beijing Trial Measures for the Evaluation of Robot Professional Titles", and added relevant policy interpretations, adding a robotics professional title review major to the engineering technology series, accurately matching the talent evaluation needs in the field of robotics, and helping Beijing create a new highland for the innovation and development of the robotics industry. The "Measures" will be officially implemented in 2026, and the first review will be launched in July this year.

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