Three major US indexes closed at new record highs after a lower-than-expected inflation report raised the possibility of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut later this year and prompted investors to shift to riskier assets. The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, the Nasdaq rose 1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 470 points. Technology stocks led the rally, with AMD and IBM surging 7.5% and 8.77%, respectively, after IBM said it had successfully implemented a key quantum error correction algorithm on AMD chips, boosting sentiment across the sector. Intel rose 1.6% after returning to...
The dollar weakened on Wednesday (August 20th) after US President Donald Trump called for Federal Reserve Chairwoman Lisa Cook to resign. Investors are also awaiting a speech by Fed Chairwoman Jerome Powell on Friday for clues on interest rate policy. Trump cited calls from the head of the US Federal Housing Finance Administration urging the Justice Department to investigate Cook for alleged mortgage fraud. Spokespeople for Cook and the Fed did not immediately respond to requests for comment. "The market has made it clear in its conscience that it doesn't like it when the president...
Gold edged higher as traders weighed the outlook for US monetary policy ahead of a key speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell later this week. Gold bullion prices traded near $3,330 per ounce as the market awaited clues from Powell's annual speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday. Swaps predict a high probability that the Fed will cut borrowing costs by a quarter point next month. Lower interest rates benefit gold because it doesn't pay interest. However, the Fed's monetary easing path was complicated by higher-than-expected inflation figures last week, which caused some...
The AUD/USD pair weakened for the third consecutive trading day on Wednesday (August 20th). The Australian currency pair slumped near 0.6425 as antipodean currencies underperformed their peers. The Australian dollar faced sharp selling pressure as financial market participants expected the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to cut interest rates again for the remainder of the year. Dovish bets from the RBA intensified as inflation in Australia has approached the central bank's desired range of 2%-3%. Earlier, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) maintained its benchmark interest rate. China's...
The pound (GBP) attracted significant buying interest against other major currencies on Wednesday as the UK Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for July showed a larger-than-expected increase. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that headline inflation rose at an annual rate of 3.8%, faster than the 3.7% expected and the 3.6% in June, a key factor that will allow the Bank of England (BoE) to maintain its "gradual and cautious" monetary expansion guidance going forward. Core CPI - which excludes volatile items such as food, energy, alcohol, and tobacco – grew at a faster rate of...
Gold edged higher on Wednesday (August 20th) but remained near a three-week low, as investors awaited the minutes of the Federal Reserve's July meeting and this week's Jackson Hole, Wyoming, central banking symposium for clues on further interest rate cuts. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $3,321.33 an ounce, as of 08:32 GMT, after hitting its lowest level since August 1st. U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.2% to $3,364.20. The U.S. dollar index steadied after hitting a more than one-week high earlier in the session, making gold more expensive for holders of other currencies. "Spot gold...