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Asian markets and European futures were mixed after Wall Street ended the session overnight in the red, as a fresh round of trade tariffs in addition to Trump’s legal issues kept risk appetite in check.
Further trade tariffs being levied by the US, and in retaliation by China, highlighted the lack of progress being made by the two nations in the trade talks which were happening as the tariffs were being applied. The bar had been set low for the trade negotiations and it appears that even those low expectations have been missed. Boeing and Caterpillar, which have been bellwethers for sentiment during the trade spat due to their significant international exposure, were the biggest drag on the Dow, which closed 0.3% lower.
What to watch for from Fed Chair Powell’s speech:
The key highlight today will be Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole conference at 14:00 GMT this afternoon.
Following the FOMC minutes, which suggested the Fed
Powell’s speech could also contain fresh hints as to how the Fed
A note on Trump
The speech by Fed Chair Powell comes following an open criticism from President Trump earlier in the week. Trump bemoaning the Fed hiking rates is highly unlikely to prevent the Fed from increasing interest rates; if anything, it could put slightly more pressure on the Fed to hike in December to avoid suggestions of caving into Trump. Fed Chair Powell is unlikely to start bickering in public with Trump, so we expect him to ignore criticism from his boss.The information and comments provided herein under no circumstances are to be considered an offer or solicitation to invest and nothing herein should be construed as investment advice. The information provided is believed to be accurate at the date the information is produced. CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Please note that 71% of our retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing money.