Gold has moved 0.46% higher overnight to almost pare all of the losses suffered on Thursday. The yellow metal is now trading at $1787/oz. Silver has also moved higher during the Asia Pac session and trades at $23.0/oz. In the rest of the commodities complex.
Looking the major news:
A date for the diary, Fed Chair Powell's Jackson Hole speech has been scheduled for August 27th.
A personal information protection law was passed in China. There will now be consultations with large internet-based firms looking to implement steps.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Yellen said it could be possible that some states need extra support after the current employment support schemes expire.
Looking ahead to the rest of the session highlights include Canadian retail sales and comments from Fed's Kaplan.
· Gold Price Forecast: Bullish flag pattern in the making for XAU/USD
From a technical perspective, the recent price action constitutes the formation of a downward sloping channel on the 1-hour chart. Against the backdrop of a strong rebound from multi-month lows, the mentioned channel could be categorized as a bullish continuation flag pattern. However, technical indicators on the daily chart – though have recovered from the negative territory – are yet to confirm a bullish bias. This makes it prudent to wait for a sustained break through the channel resistance before positioning for any further appreciating move.
A subsequent strength beyond the weekly tops, around the $1,795 region, and the $1,800 mark will reaffirm the bullish bias. The commodity might then surpass an intermediate hurdle near the $1,812-13 region, or the very important 200-day SMA, and aim to challenge the double-top resistance, around the $1,832-34 zone.
On the flip side, the overnight swing low, around the $1,775 region now seems to protect the immediate downside ahead of the trend-channel support near the $1,770 area. This is closely followed by 200-hour SMA, around the $1,760 area, which if broken decisively will shift the bias in favour of bearish traders. The next relevant support is pegged near the $1,751 horizontal zone. The downward momentum could further get extended towards the $1,718-17 region before the metal eventually drops back to challenge the $1,700 round-figure mark.
· Copper rises after recent fall, set for biggest weekly loss in 2 months
Copper prices rose on Friday but was on track for a weekly loss after investors sold the base metal complex on China’s slowing growth, COVID-19 outbreaks, and U.S. tapering worries.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 1% to $8,985.50 a tonne by 0302 GMT. For the week so far, it is down 6.1% to be on track for its biggest weekly fall since June 18
The contract hit its lowest in over four months on Wednesday, as recent weakening economic data from top consumer China, rising coronavirus cases globally and U.S. Federal Reserve officials expecting to reduce bond buying hurt metals.
· Jackson Hole - The Main Economic Events
Next week features the end-of-summer event that every economist has been waiting for: the Fed’s annual get together in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Returning as an in-person gala held against the backdrop of the towering Grand Teton Mountains after last year’s pandemic-induced online affair, the event features a keynote speech from the head of the Fed.
Chair Jerome Powell this year will address the “economic outlook” at 10 a.m. E.T. (1400 GMT) on Friday. The full symposium runs Thursday through Saturday.
The Fed’s last two meetings have shown that U.S. monetary policy is nearing a key turning point away from the crisis-era accommodation put in place in 2020, and Powell’s speech could be the last hint at their next steps before the September policy meeting.
· Improved U.S. labor market will keep the economy growing at a steady pace: Strategist
Paul Christopher of Wells Fargo Investment Institute says the U.S. labor market is expected to fuel growth in the economy as more people get jobs, despite the friction of inflation.
· The US economy is healthy and fundamentally strong, says economist
Steven Ricchiuto of Mizuho Securities says the strength of the U.S. dollar is a reason why inflation hasn't reached the Federal Reserve's target even though the American economy is healthy.
· Solid consumption growth boosts hopes for U.S. economy: Economist
Thomas Costerg of Pictet Wealth Management says although the economic momentum in the U.S. will decelerate, it will not mean a slowdown in U.S. economic growth, but a return to normalization instead.
· U.S. labor market powers ahead with strong job gains, lower unemployment rate
U.S. employers hired the most workers in nearly a year in July and continued to raise wages, giving the economy a powerful boost as it started the second half of what many economists believe will be the best year for growth in almost four decades.
The Labor Department's closely watched employment report on Friday also showed the unemployment rate dropped to a 16-month low of 5.4% and more people waded back into the labor force. The report followed on the heels of news last week that the economy fully recovered in the second quarter the sharp loss in output suffered during the very brief pandemic recession.
· UK retail sales drop unexpectedly in July
British retail sales unexpectedly fell sharply last month, according to official data which suggested at least some consumers were more focused on England's progress in the Euro 2020 soccer tournament than going to the shops.
Retail sales volumes dropped by 2.5% in July from June, the Office for National Statistics said.
· Hong Kong expected to take until next year to draft anti-sanctions law -SCMP
The Hong Kong government is expected to take until next year to draft an anti-sanctions law to counter actions by foreign governments, the South China Morning Post reported on Friday
The news comes as global banks and other financial institutions scramble to determine how the legislation could impact their operations in the Asian finance hub.
Beijing is expected to formally approve the law for the Chinese-ruled city on Friday and then leave Hong Kong officials to hold talks to decide if the law, already adopted in the mainland, should be amended for the city, the newspaper said, citing sources.
· China passes major data protection law as regulatory scrutiny on tech sector intensifies
China passed a major data protection law on Friday setting out tougher rules on how companies collect and handle their users’ information.
The rules add to Beijing’s tightening of regulation, particularly around data, which could impact the way China’s technology giants operate.
The Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) lays out for the first time a comprehensive set of rules around data collection, processing and protection, that were previously governed by piecemeal legislation.
· China passes new personal data privacy law, to take effect Nov. 1
· Japan's consumer price falls narrow on global commodity inflation
Japan's core consumer prices narrowed their annual pace of falls for three straight months in July, a sign global commodities inflation was offsetting some of the deflationary pressure from a pandemic-induced spending slump.
Japan's core consumer price index (CPI), which includes oil but excludes fresh food prices, fell 0.2% in July from a year earlier, marking the 12th straight month of declines, government data showed on Friday.
· NATO pledges to speed evacuations from Afghanistan as criticism mounts
More than 18,000 people have been flown out of Kabul since the Taliban took over Afghanistan's capital, a NATO official said on Friday, pledging to redouble evacuation efforts as criticism of the West's handling of the crisis mounted.
· Indonesia air force sends plane to repatriate citizens from Afghanistan
· New Zealand's Ardern extends lockdown as virus outbreak widens
New Zealand'sPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern extended a nationwide lockdown on Friday as the number of COVID-19 cases in the country jumped and the outbreak widened beyond its largest city, Auckland, to the capital, Wellington.
Ardern extended the lockdown until midnight on Aug 24, saying that the outbreak had widened to other cities.
· Singapore conditionally lifting quarantines for travelers from Germany, Hong Kong, Brunei and Macao
· S.Korea extends social distancing, allows fully vaccinated some leeway
South Korea has extended its social distancing curbs for two weeks amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, while allowing vaccinated people some latitude, its prime minister said on Friday.
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