Focus on Jackson Hole and the coronavirus Delta variant

What you need to know on Wednesday, August 25:

The greenback edged lower for a second consecutive day, as the market mood remained positive. Stocks gains were modest, as investors become cautious ahead of the Jackson Hole Symposium and whatever US Federal Reserve chief Powell has to say about the future of monetary policy. The timing for tapering is in the eye of the storm and Powell may disappoint investors.

Commodity-linked currencies were the best performers, advancing the most against the greenback, helped by stable gold prices and firmer crude oil prices. AUD/USD trades around 0.7250, while USD/CAD stands at 1.2590. On the other hand, spot gold closed at $1,805 a troy ounce, while WTI settled at $ 67.60 a barrel.

The EUR/USD pair struggles around 1.1750, while GBP/USD and USD/JPY ended the day unchanged.

US Treasury yields were up, with that on the 10-year note nearing 1.30% at the end of the day.

The coronavirus Delta variant weighs on the market’s sentiment. The number of cases in Israel skyrocketed, while the UK reported over 30K new coronavirus contagions and 174 new deaths, with the number of deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending 13 August at the highest level since late March. The situation is also worsening in the US.

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