Powell speech: Pandemic is a disinflationary shock

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

Following the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) decision to keep the policy rate unchanged within the target range of 0-0.25%, Jerome Powell, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, is delivering his comments on the policy outlook.

Key quotes

"Earlier fiscal actions by Congress are really helping the economy."

"It's a good thing a new package is being considered."

"Pandemic is a disinflationary shock."

"The Fed is not even thinking about thinking about raising rates."

About Jerome Powell (via Federalreserve.gov)

Jerome H. Powell took office as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on February 5, 2018, for a four-year term. Mr. Powell also serves as Chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee, the System's principal monetary policymaking body. Mr. Powell has served as a member of the Board of Governors since taking office on May 25, 2012, to fill an unexpired term. He was reappointed to the Board and sworn in on June 16, 2014, for a term ending January 31, 2028.

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

GBP/USD breaches below 1.3500, two-day lows

GBP/USD faces renewed selling pressure, eroding the earlier advance and slipping back to the sub-1.3500 region on Wednesday. Cable’s loss of upside momentum follows the resurgence of the demand for the Greenback amid steady geopolitical tensions. Looking ahead, the British Pound is expected to remain under scrutiny in light of the release of UK GDP data on Thursday.

EUR/USD deflates to weekly troughs near 1.1520

EUR/USD accelerates its daily correction, coming close to the 1.1520 region, or weekly lows, in the latter part of Wednesday’s session. The pair’s drop comes amid the US Dollar’s firm rebound, as investors seem to have fully digested the latest US inflation data.

Gold challenges $4,400 amid USD bounce

Gold now gives away part of its earlier advance to the vicinity of the $4,450 mark per troy ounce and approaches the $4,400 hurdle on Wednesday. The yellow metal’s partial loss of momentum comes as the US Dollar manages to regain balance in the wake of the CPI-led decline.

Ripple lags recovery as exchange reserves expand

Ripple is trading within a broadly constrained technical structure, with support at $1.00 and key moving averages limiting its recovery potential. In August, the remittance token declined by approximately 6.5%, extending its total pullback to around 14% from July's $1.18 peak.

911 million shares freed: Why SpaceX rallied into its own supply

The most heavily trailed supply event of the year landed on August 6, and the SpaceX (SPCX) stock went up. Roughly 911.5 million shares held by insiders and early backers became eligible to trade, around 43% more than the entire float sold at the listing.

Why is Crude Oil priced for a reopening the ships haven't made?

Fourteen vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday. Before the war, the count ran near 120 a day. In the sessions since the waterway was publicly declared open, Brent has drifted back to $87 and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) to $81, both a little lower again on Wednesday, with daily momentum on each unwound from the top of its range in late July to the low twenties now.