📆 Wednesday, August 21
► The Stoxx 600 edged higher today (+0.2%) as European markets took a cautious tone ahead of the Fed meeting minutes and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's expected speech at the Jackson Hole symposium. Yesterday we saw a slightly negative session and a weaker USD due to concerns over the timing of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, especially as concerns grew that today's preliminary BLS employment revision (expected at 14:00 UTC+0) could show that up to one million fewer jobs (according to Goldman Sachs) were created than expected, raising fears that the Fed was too slow in easing monetary policy after all. Investors await the release of HCOB PMI data tomorrow to gauge the economic health of the region.
► There was little movement in the US markets after yesterday's slightly negative sessions, which ended Wall Street's longest winning streak this year, as investors act cautiously. Traders are awaiting revised employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and further clues on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy stance. US trading on Tuesday closed lower across the major indices, reflecting uncertainty in the market, especially after US investment banks warned that hiring may have been much slower than the data suggests (=possibly historically high downward revision to US employment data). Investors are focusing on the minutes of the upcoming Fed meeting and Powell's speech on Friday for clues on future rate cuts. Bond traders are increasingly betting on a recovery in the Treasury market, driven by expectations of an upcoming cycle of rate cuts by the Fed.
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