Financial Breakfast, August 25: The U.S. dollar hits its highest level in two months, waiting for Powell to speak at the Jackson Hole annual meeting | slot hoki hari ini, pusaka slot
Huitong Finance APP News - The U.S. dollar rose across the board on Thursday (August 25), Beijing time, and gold prices were basically stable. Despite the strength of the U.S. dollar and the rise in U.S. Treasury yields, market caution increased before Federal Reserve Chairman Powell spoke at the Jackson Hole Symposium.
Commodity closing situation: U.S. gold futures closed down 0.1%, with a settlement price of $1,947.10 per ounce. Brent crude futures rose 0.2% to $83.36 a barrel; U.S. crude futures rose 0.2% to $79.05 a barrel. U.S. stock market closing conditions: The Dow Jones Index closed down 1.08% at 34,099.42 points; the S&P 500 Index closed down 1.36% at 4,375.68 points; the Nasdaq Composite Index closed down 1.87% at 13,463.97 points.
Friday Preview
Gold prices were little changed on Thursday, despite a stronger dollar and rising U.S. Treasury yields, as caution mounted ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium.
The Federal Reserve holds its annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on August 24-26, and investors will wait for Powell to speak at 10:05 a.m. ET on Friday to confirm whether interest rates will remain high for longer.
David Meger, head of metals trading at High Ridge Futures, said: "The expectation remains that most Fed policymakers will continue to emphasize the need to combat inflationary pressures in their speeches."
Data showed that the number of people filing for unemployment benefits in the United States fell for the second consecutive week, and labor market conditions remained tight despite the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes. Meger added: "A strong job market continues to signal the need for the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates higher for longer."
The rebound in the dollar and U.S. Treasury yields after the unemployment benefits data also weakened gold's appeal. Spot silver fell 0.8% to $24.13 an ounce; platinum rose 0.8% to $937.38 an ounce. Palladium fell 3.2% to 1,232.8 an ounce$6.
Crude oil
Oil prices ended slightly higher in volatile trading on Thursday, falling $1 a barrel in early trading on demand concerns and a stronger dollar, but rebounded after a report on falling diesel inventories in Europe.
Oil prices began to recover in mid-morning in New York after data from Dutch consulting firm Insights Global showed that diesel stocks in independent warehouses at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp area (ARA) refining and storage center fell 3% in the latest week.
UBS Group AG analyst Giovanni Staunovo said falling European refined oil inventories and falling U.S. two-year Treasury yields may have boosted oil prices, adding that volatility could continue until investors know the Fed's next move.
Federal Reserve officials and other global central bank policymakers will gather in Jackson Hole. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will speak at the symposium on Friday. On the eve of his speech, investor caution pushed the safe-haven dollar higher, making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies, dampening demand.
On Wednesday, Japan reported that factory activity shrank for the third consecutive month in August. Business activity in the euro zone also fell more than expected, and the UK economy looks set to shrink in the current quarter.
U.S. business activity approached a stagnation point in August, with growth at the weakest pace since February. But the data also showed that labor market conditions remain tight despite the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes. On the supply side, Iranian state media quoted Iran's Oil Minister as reporting that despite still being subject to U.S. sanctions, Iran's crude oil production will reach 3.4 million barrels per day by the end of September.
According to people familiar with the matter, U.S. officials are also drafting a proposal that would ease sanctions on Venezuela and allow the country to export more oil if it moves toward free and fair presidential elections.
The U.S. dollar rose across the board on Thursday as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chairman Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium on Friday.
Investors await Powell's speech on monetary policy at 10:05 a.m. ET on Friday to get a sense of the Fed's thinking on whether it is close to completing its rate hikes and how long it plans to keep rates high. Stuart Cole, chief macroeconomist at EquitiCapital, said: "I think what we are seeing is mainly a position adjustment before the Jackson Hole symposium." He said: "No one knows what Powell will say tomorrow, so the default currency to buy is the dollar."
Philadelphia Fed President Harker and BoBoston Fed President Collins on Thursday tentatively accepted a surge in bond market yields as complementary to the Fed's efforts to slow economic growth and return inflation to its 2% target, noting that further interest rate hikes are likely not needed.
Data on Thursday showed that the number of people filing for unemployment benefits in the United States fell for the second consecutive week, and labor market conditions remained tight despite the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes; Cole said: "I think the unemployment benefits report may also have provided some support for the dollar. These data are not as weak as people feared, and to some extent offset the impact of yesterday's downward revision of employment data."
He said: "But overall, the market's reaction to these data has been quite muted, indicating that the Jackson Hole seminar is the main focus." The U.S. dollar index rose 0.63% to 103.99, the highest since June 8.
This week’s weaker-than-expected data from Europe and the United States dampened investor appetite for riskier currencies and supported the safe-haven dollar.
The Turkish lira hit its highest level in two months against the US dollar, rising about 6% to 25.55 lira, after the Turkish central bank raised the one-week repo rate from 17.5% to 25%, much higher than expected.
After Turkish President Erdogan appointed former Wall Street banker Elkann as governor, the Turkish Central Bank started a tightening cycle in June.
The Central Bank of Türkiye reiterated its commitment to further tighten policy in a gradual manner if necessary on Thursday and announced a substantial increase in the one-week repo rate by 750 basis points.
Piotr Matys, senior foreign exchange analyst at Touch Capital Markets, said: "Today's decision sends a very strong signal that the Central Bank of Turkey (CBRT) is determined to curb inflation, and the market's initial reaction is very positive."
The pound fell against the dollar and euro on Thursday, a day after data showed UK economic activity shrank in August, prompting markets to lower expectations for further interest rate hikes by the Bank of England. Sterling fell 1.03% to $1.26085, its lowest level in nearly two months.
A drop in British factory output has put the economy on the path to recession, prompting the market to lower expectations for further interest rate hikes by the Bank of England.
The yen continues to be under pressure, with traders watching for signs that the Japanese government is preparing to intervene to support the yen as it did last year. The dollar rose 0.7% against the yen, not far from last week's nine-month high of 146.565 yen.
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