Fed’s Bostic: Not hearing any hints suggesting that consumer spending is slowing

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

More comments are flowing in from the Atlanta Fed President Bostic, via Reuters, as he now speaks on the economic outlook.

Not hearing any hints suggesting that consumer spending is slowing.

Fed wants to detect any signs that things may be weakening as early as possible.

There will be a ‘new phase’ of tariff war if businesses start to pass costs on to consumers.

Fed is in 'unchartered territory' as it works to increase banking reserves.

Fed asked banks about their limit on reserves, and limit turned out to be different from what they reported.

He would not be troubled if inflation went to 2.2% and stayed there, comfortable with some variance above and below target.

Fed’s Bostic: Economy solid, future policy should be data dependent

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

USD/JPY consolidates near 160.50 intervention zone ahead of FOMC decision

USD/JPY remains close to the 160.50 intervention zone during the Asian session on Wednesday. Despite the BoJ's rate hike to its highest level since 1995, Japan's borrowing costs remain significantly lower than those of peer nations such as the US. Moreover, the BoJ's more cautious stance on bonds undermines the Japanese Yen and supports the currency pair. Meanwhile, the US Dollar remains on the back foot amid the optimism over the US-Iran peace deal and ahead of the Fed policy decision, capping spot prices.

AUD/USD holds steady above 0.7050; looks to Fed decision for fresh impetus

AUD/USD is seen consolidating above mid-0.7000s during the Asian session as traders await the outcome of a two-day FOMC meeting later this Wednesday. In the meantime, the optimism over an interim peace deal between the US and Iran keeps the US Dollar bulls on the defensive. This, along with the RBA's hawkish pause on Tuesday, acts as a tailwind for the currency pair.

Gold remains below 200-SMA as traders await FOMC rate decision

Gold preserves weekly gains registered over the past two days, though it remains below a technically significant 200-day SMA through the Asian session on Wednesday. Traders now seem hesitant and are keenly awaiting the highly anticipated Fed rate decision before placing fresh directional bets. In the meantime, the US-Iran interim peace agreement keeps the US Dollar bulls on the defensive, which might continue to act as a tailwind for the bullion.

Ethereum: Whales buy the dip, but institutional and US demand remain absent

Ethereum large holders have leveraged the price dip from the past two weeks to expand their holdings. Wallets with a balance of 10K-100K ETH have added roughly 510K ETH to their collective balance since June 5, when the top altcoin approached the $1,500 level. This dip-buying pressure has partly helped push ETH toward $1,800.

1% rate, 160 Yen: Why Japan’s historic hike changed little

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) pushed its short-term policy rate to 1% on Tuesday, the highest setting since 1995 and a 31-year milestone in a normalization cycle barely two years old. It is the kind of number that should mark a turning point for the Yen, and it did almost nothing.

Why a hawkish RBA is no longer enough to lift the Australian Dollar

The Reserve Bank of Australia delivered more than what markets expected: a hawkish hold that should have supported the Aussie. But markets widely ignored it, focusing instead on slowing economic growth and proving that central bank messaging alone isn’t always enough to drive currencies.