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LONDON —  Gold struck a seven-year pinnacle above $1,700 an ounce on Tuesday as massive Fed stimulus floods markets with dollars, weakening the greenback and sending investors running to the precious metal, analysts said.

      Just after 12:30 GMT, gold rallied to $1,731.25 an ounce on the London Bullion Market, striking a peak last seen in November 2012.

      The dollar slid against main rivals on Tuesday in the wake of the Federal Reserve's ongoing stimulus policies that are aimed at cushioning the blow to the world's biggest economy from the deadly COVID-19 outbreak.

      This has made dollar-denominated commodities like gold cheaper for buyers holding rival currencies.

      "Gold has been staging an impressive rally," said Jasper Lawler, head of research at traders London Capital Group.

      "For us, the common denominator is the... new programmes introduced by the Federal Reserve.

      "More dollars swirling around in the system have devalued the dollar."

      ActivTrades chief analyst Carlo Alberto De Casa said gold was buoyed purely by the US central bank's stimulus rather than investors shunning risky assets -- with gold traditionally seen as a haven investment in times of economic unrest.

      "Gold is skyrocketing... (but) this new rally is not related to a swift return of risk-off, but instead driven by the huge increase of the Federal Reserve's balance sheet," he said.

NEW YORK — Wall Street stocks retreated in early trading on Monday ahead of key earnings reports from banks and other companies that will highlight the initial impact of shutdowns imposed to counter the coronavirus.

      About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.3 per cent at 23,411.97.

      The broad-based S&P 500 shed 1.2 per cent to 2,756.98, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.6 per cent to 8,101.60.

      Earnings season for the first quarter gets underway in earnest on Tuesday with reports from JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, followed by reports from other banking giants later in the week.

      The results for the quarter ended March 31 will offer insight into how much the coronavirus shutdowns and layoffs are affecting mortgage and credit card payments.

      The banks are also deeply involved in Washington-launched programmes to stimulate the economy and provide relief to small businesses.

      The results come as investors debate the likelihood that US stocks could face another big selloff in the coming weeks after bouncing somewhat from its mid-March lows.

      Some market watchers say the US economy could bounce back relatively quickly once the coronavirus situation is managed, but others warn of a more protracted slowdown because of the risk of second-wave outbreaks.

      This week's economic reports include critical data on March retail sales, as well as the weekly jobless claims.

VIENNA — Top oil-producing countries agreed on Sunday on "historic" output cuts in a bid to boost plummeting oil prices.

      OPEC producers dominated by Saudi Arabia and allies led by Russia met via videoconference for an hour on Sunday in a last effort to cement a deal struck early Friday.

      It still required Mexico's agreement and in a compromise reached Sunday they agreed to a cut of 9.7 million barrels per day from May, according to its Energy Minister Rocio Nahle, down slightly from 10 million barrels per day envisioned earlier.

      OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo called the cuts "historic".

      "They are largest in volume and the longest in duration, as they are planned to last for two years," he said.

      The agreement between the Vienna-based Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and partners foresees deep output cuts in May and June followed by a gradual reduction in cuts until April 2022.

      Barkindo added that the deal "paved the way for a global alliance with the participation of the G-20".

      Following extensive efforts "we announce completing the historical agreement", Kuwait Oil Minister Khaled Al-Fadhel tweeted.

      Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman, who chaired the meeting together with his Russian and Algerian counterparts, also confirmed that the discussions "ended with consensus".

       'Great deal for all'

      US President Donald Trump welcomed a "great deal for all", saying on Twitter it would "save hundreds of thousands of energy jobs in the United States".

      He added he "would like to thank and congratulate" Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince and de facto leader Mohammed Bin Salman, both of whom he had spoken to.

      In a statement, the Kremlin confirmed the joint phone call, adding that Putin and Trump agreed on the "great importance" of the deal.

      Initial reticence from Mexico to introduce output cuts had led to a standoff that cast doubt on efforts to bolster oil prices, pushed to near two-decade lows.

      Oil prices have slumped since the beginning of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has sapped demand as countries around the world have put their populations under lockdown.

      Compounding the problem, key players Russia and Saudi Arabia had engaged in a price war, ramping up output in a bid to hold on to market share and undercut US shale producers.

        'Temporary relief'

      Rystad Energy analyst Per Magnus Nysveen said Sunday's agreement provided "at least a temporary relief" as fuel consumption was expected to fall globally by 27 million barrels per day in April and 20 million barrels per day in May.

      His colleague Bjornar Tonhaugen said that even though the deal made "the single largest output cut in history", prices were still expected to see "renewed downwards pressure".

      "The oil market will see enormous stock builds in April as the deal is only in effect from 1 May, while gradual shut …and production declines will already happen during the current month," he said.

      Top oil producers struggled to finalise production cuts during a virtual summit held by G-20 energy ministers on Friday, despite Trump's mediation efforts to end the standoff with Mexico.

      Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak was quoted by Russian news agency TASS as saying he did not expect oil markets to recover before "end of the year, in the best case".

      Harry Tchilinguirian of BNP Paribas said "a sustained recovery" in the oil price was not expected "until pent-up demand is released in Q3 on the lifting of confinement and social distancing measures related to COVID-19".

TEHRAN — Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday the country had won a legal "victory" over $1.6 billion of its assets that had long been frozen on a US request in Luxembourg.

      Tehran and Washington have long been arch enemies and tensions have risen sharply since President Donald Trump in 2018 withdrew from a nuclear accord and reimposed stinging sanctions.

      In a separate dispute, a New York court in 2012 ordered Iran to pay $7 billion in damages over the September 11 attacks, arguing that it had aided Al-Qaeda by allowing its militants to travel through its territory.

      Iran has rejected the accusation and refused to pay the money.

      Rouhani said in a televised cabinet meeting Sunday that "our central bank, our foreign ministry [have] recently won a very good victory in a legal battle".

      "$1.6 billion of our money was in Luxembourg and the Americans had put their hands on it," he said.

      After trying for months, "we succeeded some days ago and freed this money from the Americans' grasp," he declared.

      The Luxembourg Court of Cassation had devoted an April 2 hearing to the case of Iranian assets frozen there on a US request, according the investigative news site Paperjam.

      The court is yet to make its decision public.

      But Rouhani hailed a victory in a "difficult situation" for Iran, which has been battling the Middle East's most deadly novel coronavirus outbreak.

      COVID-19 has so far killed over 4,400 people and infected more than 71,600 in the Islamic republic, according to official health ministry figures.

      Sanctions-hit Iran has requested a $5 billion emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund to battle the outbreak.

      But the US, which effectively holds a veto at the IMF, has signalled it has no intention to allow the loan, alleging that Iran would use the money to fund "terror abroad".

      Tehran in 2017 unsuccessfully attempted to repatriate the $1.6 billion frozen in the Clearstream clearing house, a financial company based in Luxembourg.

      A judge denied the demand at the time and ruled that the assets would remain temporarily frozen in the small EU nation.

      Billions of dollars in Iranian assets were also frozen in the US and Europe as part of efforts to push Tehran into a nuclear deal with world powers, which was finally signed in July 2015.

      Trump in 2018 withdrew from the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and reimposed tough sanctions that have severely damaged Iran's oil sector and its wider economy.

NEW YORK — Boeing has enlisted investment banks Lazard and Evercore to advise it on talks with Washington on potential federal aid in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, sources told AFP on Friday.

      The talks with the US Treasury Department, which is managing a $2.2 trillion US emergency aid package, could begin towards the end of April, said a source on condition of anonymity.

      Boeing, the biggest US exporter, had sought $60 billion in federal support for itself and the 17,000 suppliers and contractors in its supply chain. The sector employs around 2.5 million people in the US, according to the aerospace giant.

      Around 17 billion dollars aimed at Boeing was included in the giant federal relief bill approved in March. Boeing had $27.3 billion in debt at the end of December as it works to complete the purchase of Brazilian company Embraer's commercial plane operation.

      President Donald Trump again offered strong support for the company on Friday.

      "We can't let anything happen to Boeing," Trump said at a White House briefing. "It's got so much potential."

      Later in the briefing, Trump said that he thought Boeing "probably" will seek federal support.

      "This isn't a great time to sell airplanes, let's not kid ourselves," Trump said. "We'll do whatever's necessary to do."

      A stumbling block has been the question of what Washington will get in return for the support.

      Boeing chief executive David Calhoun has balked at the idea that taxpayers would receive shares in Boeing, a proposal floated by some congressional Democrats.

      In talks with major airlines, Treasury officials have demanded that carriers maintain their staff until at least September 30.

      But Boeing is targeting a reduction of 10 per cent of its workforce in the commercial plane business, the Wall Street Journal reported. The company's factories have been shuttered due to COVID-19.

      In anticipation of complex negotiations with the Treasury, Boeing has also asked Lazard and Evercore to explore private sources of funds, said a different source, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.

      Boeing declined to comment.

      Boeing also continues to be embroiled in a complex process with the Federal Aviation Administration over efforts to win approval to resume flights on the 737 MAX, which has been grounded since March 2019 following two deadly crashes.

      A key test flight of the Boeing 737 MAX has been pushed back by a month to May due to the upheaval of the coronavirus crisis, sources told AFP earlier this week.

VIENNA — The world's top oil-producing countries were scheduled to meet via videoconference at 16:00 GMT on Sunday, a source close to OPEC said, as they would try to address plummeting oil prices.

      The source spoke on the condition of anonymity, but the meeting was confirmed by Azerbaijan.

      "The meeting will take place in the framework of consultations resulting from the meeting on April 9 of ministers from OPEC and non-OPEC countries," Azerbaijan's energy ministry said in a statement.

      It added that the meeting would be chaired by Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman and Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak.

      After long virtual negotiations which started on Thursday and continued well past midnight, the Saudi-led OPEC group and other top exporters agreed -- except for lone holdout Mexico -- to a record deal that would cut output by 10 million barrels per day between May and June.

      Mexico's reticence led to a standoff that cast doubt on efforts to bolster oil prices, pushed to near two-decade lows by the demand-sapping pandemic and a Saudi-Russia price war that rattled global markets.

      Under the OPEC-led deal, which needs Mexico's consent, the country was expected to cut production by 400,000 bpd.

      But Mexico insisted on only cutting production by 100,000 bpd, and later on Friday reached a deal with Washington under which the United States would slash output by 250,000 bpd "as compensation" for its southern neighbour.

      But the energy ministers of the G-20 countries failed to agree on an output cut on Saturday.

      Oil prices have slumped since the beginning of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

      Compounding the problem, Russia and Saudi Arabia had both ramped up output in a bid to hold on to market share and undercut US shale producers.

      The tentative production cut deal marked a possible end of the price war between Riyadh and Moscow.

RIYADH — G-20 energy ministers held virtual talks on Friday as major oil producers scrambled to finalise output cuts to shore up prices, with Mexico announcing a deal with the United States that could end an impasse.

      Mexico was the lone holdout in an OPEC-led agreement reached after marathon overnight talks that would see output slashed by 10 million barrels per day in May and June.

      The standoff had cast doubt on efforts to bolster oil prices, pushed to near two-decade lows by the demand-sapping coronavirus pandemic and a Saudi-Russia price war.

      The G-20 talks, hosted by top exporter Saudi Arabia, are expected to seal the deal more widely with non-OPEC countries in the group including Mexico, the United States and Canada.

      Under the OPEC deal, Mexico was expected to cut production by 400,000 barrels per day but the country resisted during the overnight talks and demanded the reduction be limited to 100,000.

      Speaking to reporters later Friday, Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he had reached an agreement with his US counterpart Donald Trump to cut production by 100,000 bpd.

      He added that Trump had agreed to cut US production by 250,000 bpd "as compensation" for Mexico.

      There was no immediate comment from Trump, and it was unclear whether the OPEC oil cartel and its allies would agree to the Mexico-US deal.

      The production cut agreement hinges on Mexico's consent for it to take effect, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said early Friday after an hours-long meeting.

      Riyadh, which currently holds the G-20's rotating presidency, has said the G-20 talks were aimed at ensuring "market stability".

      Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak urged the G-20 ministers to act in a spirit of "partnership and solidarity", according to a local television station.

      "I hope that (the meeting) will help restore some much-needed stability to oil markets," said Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency.

      "The extreme volatility we are seeing in oil markets is detrimental to the global economy at a time when we can least afford it."

      'Storm clouds'

      The deal marked a possible end of the price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, which Bloomberg News said had agreed to slash output to around 8.5 million bpd.

      The impact of the cuts on prices was not immediately clear as the global oil markets were shut on Friday for the Easter weekend.

      But Stephen Innes, an analyst at AxiCorp, said the supply cuts were "less than the market hoped for" given the hit to demand from coronavirus lockdowns throughout the world.

      "The deal currently tabled will only partially offset oil price distress, but that's what it was supposed to do. Still, the storm clouds for oil prices will only completely dissipate when lockdowns are lifted," he said.

      Rystad Energy also said the cuts were not enough to restore market equilibrium.

      "The proposed 10 million bpd cut by OPEC+ for May and June will keep the world from physically testing the limits of storage capacity and save prices from falling into a deep abyss, but it will still not restore the desired market balance," the energy research firm said.

       'Hemorrhaging' industry

      Oil prices have slumped since the beginning of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

      "Our industry is hemorrhaging; no-one has been able to stem the bleeding," OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said ahead of the OPEC-led meeting, bemoaning companies already filing for bankruptcy and the tens of thousands of jobs that have been lost.

      Compounding the problem, Riyadh and Moscow had both ramped up output in a bid to hold on to market share and undercut US shale producers.

      While the US is not in the OPEC or OPEC+ groups, it is supportive of a reduction in supply in order to stabilise prices and breathe new life into its shale industry.

      Trump had expressed optimism about the prospects for an agreement -- even as the talks appeared to be at an impasse.

      Fresh from a conference call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump told a press briefing at the White House Thursday that a deal was "close".

      Shale has transformed the US into the world's top producer, but the industry cannot sustain its high cost base as prices collapse.

      Yet, the US oil sector appears reluctant to trim production, having extracted a near-record 13 mbpd in the final week of March. This fell to 12.4 mbpd last week.

      At the same time, the global supply glut -- already weighing on oil markets before the coronavirus crisis -- has stretched oil storage capacity to its limits, forcing many producers to scale back output.

TOKYO — Tokyo stocks closed higher on Friday, extending rallies on Wall Street after the US Federal Reserve unveiled another round of massive stimulus.

      The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.79 per cent, or 152.73 points, to 19,498.50 while the broader Topix index gained 0.92 per cent, or 13.06 points, to 1,430.04.

      The Nikkei opened higher, taking a positive lead from Wall Street, where stocks advanced after the Federal Reserve unveiled new stimulus that offset news of another huge spike in jobless claims.

      "Sentiment was backed by the Fed's easing in the morning and the Bank of Japan's ETF (exchange traded funds) in the afternoon," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

      "But active buying can't be seen as investors remain nervous about the increasing number of virus infections in Japan," Horiuchi told AFP.

      The dollar fetched 108.37 yen in Asian afternoon trade, against 108.47 yen in New York.

      Mutsumi Kagawa, chief global strategist at Rakuten Securities, said the market remains in a "tug-of-war between those who are pessimistic (about the virus pandemic) and those who are optimistic,... who think they don't want to miss a rare chance to buy" shares at cheap prices.

      In Tokyo, Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing rallied 2.64 per cent to 48,190 yen despite its announcement revising down profit forecast for the year to August.

      Fujifilm rose 2.49 per cent to 5,459 yen on hopes for the clinical trials of its anti-flu drug Avigan for coronavirus patients.

      Other major shares were mixed, with Toyota slipping 0.67 per cent to 6,635 yen and Sony down 0.61 per cent at 6,670 yen, but Nintendo jumped 1.46 per cent to 44,370 yen.

LONDON — Top oil producers were scheduled to discuss on Thursday a possible cut in output after a collapse in demand due to the coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war caused the market to crash.

      The teleconference scheduled for 14:00 GMT between OPEC, its OPEC+ allies including Russia and other key non-members is seen as the best chance of providing support to prices which are wallowing near two-decade lows.

      Experts warn that without concerted action the commodity risks another steep sell-off.

      But investors seemed hopeful on Thursday, sending oil prices rising.

      Last week, US President Donald Trump claimed Russia and Saudi Arabia would step back from their stand-off and agree to slash output.

      Then OPEC member state Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of producers "to try to reach a fair deal" to "stabilise the oil market" following a phone call between its Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and Trump.

      Thursday's meeting intends to conclude an agreement to cut production by between 10 and 15 million barrels per day, Kuwait's Oil Minister Khaled Al Fadhel said in an interview with the Kuwaiti Al-Rai daily published on Thursday.

      Late Wednesday, a spokesman for the Russian energy ministry told the TASS agency that Moscow was "prepared to cut 1.6 million barrels a day", which would be the equivalent of 14 per cent of Russia's production in the first quarter of 2020.

      Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov in a press briefing on Thursday declined to give details, only saying Russia was in favour of "coordinated action to stabilise the global oil market".

      -Global standstill

      "The extraordinary producing-countries meeting is the only hope on the horizon for the market that could prevent a total price collapse," said Bjornar Tonhaugen, head of oil markets at Rystad Energy.

      Saudi Arabia will on Friday host a separate virtual gathering of energy ministers from the G-20 group of major economies in a similar bid to ensure "market stability".

      Oil prices have slumped since the beginning of the year as the COVID-19 pandemic sends large parts of the planet into lockdown and brings the global economy to a virtual standstill.

      Compounding the problem, Riyadh and Moscow have both ramped up output in a bid to hold on to market share and undercut US shale producers.

      Search for consensus

      "Saudi Arabia and Russia have been extremely clear that they will cut production if -- and only if -- other major oil producers join in as well," said SEB oil analyst, Bjarne Schieldrop.

      However, there are worries about the participation of US producers.

      The US is battling to breathe new life into its shale industry, which has transformed the nation into the world's top producer, but which cannot sustain its high cost base as prices collapse.

      Yet its oil sector appears reluctant to trim production, having extracted a near-record 13 million barrels per day in the final week of March. This fell to 12.4 million bpd last week.

      At the same time, the global supply glut -- already weighing on oil markets before the new coronavirus crisis -- has stretched oil storage capacity to its limits, forcing many producers to scale back output.

      Trump on Wednesday told reporters that he wanted to save jobs.

      "Obviously for many years I used to think OPEC was very unfair... I hated OPEC... But somewhere along the line that broke down and went the opposite way," he said.

      Ten oil-producing countries from outside the wider OPEC+ alliance, including the United States, have been asked to take part in Thursday's meeting, Russian news agency TASS reported.

      Canada, Britain, Norway, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Egypt, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago have also been invited.

      The International Energy Agency warned on Monday that the world is set for its first annual decline in oil consumption in more than a decade because of the coronavirus pandemic.

      The outbreak has shut down large swathes of the global economy, including key sectors such as air travel, manufacturing and retail.

      The global oil glut could reach 25 million bpd in April, according to Rystad Energy.  

TOKYO — Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index closed marginally lower on Thursday, as hopes for the impact of a massive Japanese economic package were offset by worries over the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

      The Nikkei 225 index lost 0.04 per cent, or 7.47 points, to 19,345.77, with brokers attributing its lower open to investors cashing in after gains in four straight sessions.

      The broader Topix index slipped 0.60 per cent, or 8.49 points, at 1,416.98.

      "Japanese stock trade is in a state of tug-of-war between the impact of the state of emergency (declared this week) and expectations for the effects of the economic package," said Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito.

      Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Thursday renewed his pledge to carry out "additional monetary easing without any delay if it's needed" as the central bank downgraded its assessment of all of Japan's regional economies.

      "Downward pressure is expected to remain strong for now as uncertainties surrounding the coronavirus are expected to last for a long time," Shinichi Yamamoto, a broker at Okasan Securities in Tokyo, told AFP.

      The dollar fetched 108.93 yen in Asian afternoon trade, against 108.90 yen in New York.

      Fujifilm dropped 7.08 per cent to 5,326 yen on profit-taking after rallies in recent sessions, despite formally announcing the start of its phase two clinical trial of its anti-flu drug Avigan for coronavirus patients in the US.

       Uniqlo forecasts downgraded

      Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing was up 1.14 per cent at 46,950 yen.

      Shortly after the closing bell, the firm said it downgraded its sales and profit forecast for the fiscal year to August due to virus concerns.

      It now expects annual net profit of 100 billion yen ($918 million), down from an earlier projection for 165 billion yen.

      It projected annual operating profit of 145 million yen, down sharply from 245 million yen. Sales were also expected to fall sharply to 2.09 trillion yen from an earlier projection of 2.34 trillion yen.

      Domestic Uniqlo sales in March dropped 27.8 per cent, chief operating officer Takeshi Okazaki told reporters.

      The virus also drove down sales and profits in China and South Korea, while a warm winter further pressured sales in Japan and the United States.

      Chairman and chief executive Tadashi Yanai said the virus was a call for the global community to come together to foster sustainable growth and not to be selfish for short-term gains.

      "I think the novel coronavirus is the biggest crisis facing mankind since World War II," he said.

      Convenience store and supermarket operator Seven and i Holdings was down 2.00 per cent at 3,473 yen.

      The firm also said after the market closure that its annual profit rose but declined to announce its full-year forecast as the virus impact remains uncertain.