Fed Minutes Lean Hawkish as Powell’s Speech Set to Reveal Rate Cut Outlook

According to ChainCatcher, citing Jintou, Capital Economics analyst Paul Ashworth pointed out that the minutes of the Federal Reserve's July meeting show that, apart from two members who voted against by favoring a rate cut in July, most officials generally agreed to keep rates unchanged. This sends a slightly hawkish signal for the September meeting. However, since the minutes predate the disappointing July jobs report, it is difficult to glean clues about the future from them. Powell's speech at Jackson Hole this week will provide deeper insight into whether a rate cut in September is already a foregone conclusion.