The British pound is showing limited movement on Wednesday, after a four-day rally in which it surged 1.7% against the retreating US dollar. GBP/USD is trading at 1.3047 in the North American session at the time of writing, up 0.1% on the day.
All Eyes on Jerome Powell
The annual meeting at Jackson Hole has added significance this year as the Federal Reserve is expected to deliver a milestone rate cut in September. Fed Chair Powell will address the gathering on Friday and investors will be looking for clues about the anticipated September move.
The Fed last cut rates in March 2020, early in the Covid pandemic. The Fed has maintained its benchmark rate at 5.25% -5.5% for over a year and all signals point to an initial rate cut at the September 18 meeting.
The most likely scenario is a quarter-point cut but earlier this month the financial markets were routed and expectations for a large half-point cut soared. Now that the markets have recovered, a quarter-point cut is once again the most likely scenario.
With inflation under control, the Fed is keeping a close eye on the US labor market, which may be cooling too fast for the Fed. The July employment report showed a sharp drop in nonfarm payrolls and a rise in unemployment and the financial markets went into panic mode. Powell is sure to touch upon employment and inflation in his speech on Friday and his take on the economic outlook could move the US dollar.
The UK will release the July PMI report on Thursday. The manufacturing and services sectors are both showing growth, as the UK economic picture has improved. The services PMI is expected to inch upwards to 52.9, up from 52.8 in June. Manufacturing has been accelerated for three straight months but the PMI is projected to remain at 52.1. We’ll hear from Bank of England Governor Bailey on Friday at the Jackson Hole symposium.
GBP/USD Technical
- GBP/USD tested support at 1.3020 earlier. Below, there is support at 1.2989
- 1.3067 and 1.3098 are the next resistance lines.