|

Calm atmosphere prevails ahead of FOMC decision

Stocks have held up well this afternoon, even with Putin’s escalation and an impending Fed rate hike.

Stocks rally despite looming Fed move

“The prospect of another bumper Fed rate hike hasn’t done much to deter investors today, and stocks have clawed back some of yesterday’s losses. But the rebounds of late have been weak, and are usually quickly undone by fresh declines. While today’s 75bps move might be a done deal, there is a very high chance that Powell will deliver another stinging rebuke to markets as he lays out the Fed’s plan to fight inflation even as the employment picture worsens.”

Putin’s sabre-rattling leaves markets unmoved, for now

“Vladimir Putin’s decision to go for partial mobilisation while waving his nuclear arsenal around is a serious development, but for now markets are too focused on what they hope the Fed might say. But it puts another level of support in for energy prices, signalling that recession risks will only keep on rising.”

Author

More from Chris Beauchamp
Share:

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD flirts with daily highs, retargets 1.1900

EUR/USD regains upside traction, returning to the 1.1880 zone and refocusing its attention to the key 1.1900 barrier. The pair’s slight gains comes against the backdrop of a humble decline in the US Dollar as investors continue to assess the latest US CPI readings and the potential Fed’s rate path.

GBP/USD remains well bid around 1.3650

GBP/USD maintains its upside momentum in place, hovering around daily highs near 1.3650 and setting aside part of the recent three-day drop. Cable’s improved sentiment comes on the back of the Greenback’s  irresolute price action, while recent hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill also collaborate with the uptick.

Gold clings to gains just above $5,000/oz

Gold is reclaiming part of the ground lost on Wednesday’s marked decline, as bargain-hunters keep piling up and lifting prices past the key $5,000 per troy ounce. The precious metal’s move higher is also underpinned by the slight pullback in the US Dollar and declining US Treasury yields across the curve.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP in choppy price action, weighed down by falling institutional interest 

Bitcoin's upside remains largely constrained amid weak technicals and declining institutional interest. Ethereum trades sideways above $1,900 support with the upside capped below $2,000 amid ETF outflows.

Week ahead – Data blitz, Fed Minutes and RBNZ decision in the spotlight

US GDP and PCE inflation are main highlights, plus the Fed minutes. UK and Japan have busy calendars too with focus on CPI. Flash PMIs for February will also be doing the rounds. RBNZ meets, is unlikely to follow RBA’s hawkish path.

Ripple Price Forecast: XRP potential bottom could be in sight

Ripple edges up above the intraday low of $1.35 at the time of writing on Friday amid mixed price actions across the crypto market. The remittance token failed to hold support at $1.40 the previous day, reflecting risk-off sentiment amid a decline in retail and institutional sentiment.