The Federal Reserve is expected to deliver its first interest-rate cut this year at its September 16-17 meeting, as it moves to counter a cooling labor market even as inflation remains above target. The anticipated quarter-point reduction may not satisfy President Donald Trump, who wants a bigger cut and has named his White House economic advisor, Stephen Miran, in time to be on the Fed Board at the September meeting, pending Senate confirmation. Here is a look at Fed officials' comments since their last policy meeting, sorting them under the labels "dove" and "hawk" as shorthand for their...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) continues to strengthen against the United States Dollar (USD) on Tuesday as traders react to signs of easing geopolitical tensions. Reports confirming a ceasefire between Israel and Iran have helped calm market nerves, prompting a shift back into risk-sensitive assets. At the time of writing, AUD/USD is trading above the 0.6500 handle, buoyed by fading demand for traditional safe-haven assets, such as the US Dollar. In Washington, Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell began his two-day testimony before Congress. His tone remained broadly consistent with...
Gold price tumbled below $3,350 on Tuesday amid broad US Dollar weakness, as US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell pushed back against reducing borrowing costs, reiterating that the impact of tariffs on inflation remains uncertain. At the time of writing, XAU/USD trades at $3,315, down over 1.50%. Bullion prices had recovered some ground, even though Powell was hawkish at his testimony at the US House of Representatives. He said that rates are modestly restrictive, acknowledging that if inflation pressures are contained, the central bank could cut rates. Aside from this, the de-escalation...
The US Dollar Index (DXY) is trading lower on Tuesday following news of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran, which has alleviated demand for the US Dollar (USD). At the time of writing, the DXY is trading near 97.65, just above the June low of 97.61. The Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell delivered hawkish remarks at his testimony to Congress, stating that the Fed "is not in a hurry to cut rates". Although he reaffirmed his data-dependent stance, reducing expectations of a July rate cut, markets remained focused on easing geopolitical tensions. Market attention quickly...
Gold prices fell on Tuesday as investors fled from safe-haven assets and continued to monitor remarks from Jerome Powell, Chair of the Federal Reserve (Fed). As Fed Powell began his two-day semi-annual testimony before Congress, his prepared remarks stated that "the Fed's obligation is to prevent a one-time increase in price-level from becoming an ongoing inflation problem by keeping inflation expectations well-anchored." Although these comments are supportive of potential rate cuts in the last quarter of the year, easing geopolitical risks appear to be the dominant driver of current price...
A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar dropped amid a fragile ceasefire between Iran and Israel. The US currency trimmed losses after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the central bank is in no rush to lower borrowing costs. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index falls 0.4% and trades off day's low; still heads for its biggest daily decline since June 12 as options sentiment sours on US currency. Powell in prepared remarks to Congress ahead of testimony later Tuesday: "For the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the...
President Donald Trump said he would fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors if she does not resign her post over mortgage-fraud accusations from a top...
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintained its cash rate at 4.1% during its April meeting, holding borrowing costs unchanged after slashing 25 bps in the February meeting, aligning with market...