Key Points:
- Stocks Lifted by Tech; Dollar Up Ahead of Powell
- Asian share gauge rises for a second day after S&P 500 jump
- Hawkish Fed chorus sets the stage for Powell at Jackson Hole
An Asian stock gauge rose Friday, helped by China’s technology sector, while the dollar ticked up before a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that’s set to shape views on US monetary tightening.
The regional index hit a one-week high as Chinese tech shares in Hong Kong extended a rally. S&P 500 futures were steady after a climb in US shares.
Fed officials gathering for an annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming have already conveyed a chorus of hawkish comments. Powell is expected to restate the resolve to keep hiking interest rates to fight inflation when he speaks at 10 a.m. Washington time Friday.
Treasuries slipped, pushing the US 10-year yield toward 3.05%. Oil scaled $93 a barrel. Gold and Bitcoin edged lower.
US central bankers at Jackson Hole stressed the need to keep raising rates. Kansas City Fed President Esther George said that a peak higher than 4% can’t be ruled out. The bond market remains divided on whether the Fed will hike by 50 basis points or 75 basis points in September.
Jackson Hole may not be a “negative market shock because expectations are hawkish while exposure still low,” said Dennis DeBusschere, founder of 22V Research. “We thought the market correction would be leading into Jackson Hole, and that has largely played out,” he said.