On Friday Powell is likely to highlight inflation progress, allows focus on employment

ING’s chief international economist James Knightley spoke with news wire Dow Jones / Market Watch:

• Powell is likely to highlight that inflation is moving in the right direction
• Giving the Fed more confidence that it will reach its 2% target
• Powell might signal that the slowdown in inflation allows the central bank to focus more on its other mandate, which is maximizing employment
• “I suspect that he will say something along the lines that, given the deterioration in the unemployment rate, it may make sense that we do start to cut rates a bit sooner”
• “The Fed would have to acknowledge that the labor market hasn’t been as good as perhaps the official data has been suggesting,”
• “Again, this is a justification for them to re-evaluate the narrative and decide on whether to put the emphasis on the need to make the monetary policy less restrictive.”

The Kansas City Federal Reserve’s 2024 Jackson Hole Symposium runs from August 22 to 24.

Federal Reserve Chair Powell speaks on Friday:

• Federal Reserve Chair Powell to speak at 10am US Eastern time on August 23

• Bank of America on Powell speaking at Jackson Hole – to keep aggressive easing option open

• Next week doesn’t start until Thursday

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.