📆 Monday, August 19
► European stocks traded little changed on Monday as traders adopted a cautious stance ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's upcoming speech at the Jackson Hole symposium. The Stoxx 600 index showed minimal movement, with defense stocks, including Rheinmetall, falling sharply after reports suggested that Germany might reduce its financial support for Ukraine.
► In the US, stock futures are also little changed after yet another positive session and the strongest single week performance since November 2023. Investors await this week’s crucial insights from Powell on the potential for interest rate cuts. Last week's rally, which brought the S&P 500 close to a record high, left traders treading carefully at the start of this week. The focus remains on Friday’s Jackson Hole event, where Powell is expected to outline the Federal Reserve's medium-term strategy amid easing inflation pressures and economic momentum. Goldman Sachs has reduced the probability of a US recession to 20%, following encouraging retail sales and more robust signs from the labor market again. The USD gave back more of last week's recovery gains with the DXY (US-Dollar index) trading 0.25% lower.
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