US indices have a bumper session on the back of positive direction given from the Federal Reserve
GO Markets
29/8/2022
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US indices had a bumper day of trading as the Federal Reserve increased interest rates by 25 basis points. The Reserve is also expected to raise rates to between 1.75% and 2.00% by the end of the year, with 7 increases expected till the end of 2022. The Federal Reserve made it clear that they are doing their utmost to fight inflation.
Jerome Powell also indicated that the economy shouldn't need to enter into a recession. Whilst the Federal Reserve lowered economic projections for 2022 and increased inflation most of this had already been priced in. The Nasdaq finished the very strong session up 3.77% as tech stocks rebounded after initially selling down on the Federal Reserve’s announcement.
It was supported by the Dow Jones and the S&P500 which were up 1.55% and 2.24% respectively. In Europe, the FTSE had a solid day rising 1.62% and the DAX performed very well increasing by 3.76%. The Chinese stock market both in Hong Kong and on the mainland was also roaring yesterday on the back of a commitment from China’s State Council to sure up and introduce policies to boost its economy.
The CSI 300 index gained 4.3% and the Hang Seng index jumped 9.1%, its largest jump since 2008. This may provide some confidence for the region. Commodities Commodity prices continue their retreat from their highs a few weeks ago.
Brent Crude Oil continues to hover below 100 USD finishing the day at 97.96 USD a drop of 0.74%. Gold was able to hold its support level at 1917 USD per ounce and bounced after initially dropping below 1,900 USD due to the interest rate announcement. Natural gas continues to tighten its price range and increased by 2.80% Cryptocurrency Bitcoin had a high volume buying day as buyers stepped up and the price of BTC/USD increased by 4.83% to 41,202 USD.
Bitcoin remains rangebound however the volume increase indicates attention may be returning. Similar results occurred for Ethereum with the ETH/USD increasing by 5.60% to 2,766 USD. FOREX The USD was weak against most other currencies following the Federal Reserve's announcement.
The AUD had a strong day backed by its commodities moving up 1.29% against the USD. The EUR/USD and GBP/USD both reacted positively to Federal Reserve’s announcement, with them moving up 0.71% and 0.81% respectively. Against the CHF the USD was able to hold up relatively well at the 0.9400 level.
The market will likely continue to react to the news from the Federal Reserve as the week draws to an end.
The ASX 200 closed out the 2025 financial year on a high, reaching a new intra-month peak of 8,592 in June and within touching distance of the all-time record. The index delivered a 1.4% total return for the month, rounding off a strong final quarter with a 9.5% return and locking in a full-year gain of 13.8% — its best performance since 2021.This strong finish all came down to the postponement of the Liberation Day tariffs. From the April 7 lows through to the end of the financial year, the ASX followed the rest of the world. Mid-cap stocks were the standout performers, beating both large and small caps as investors sought growth opportunities away from the extremes of the market. Among the sectors, Industrials outperformed Resources, benefiting from more stable earnings and supportive macroeconomic trends tied to infrastructure and logistics.But the clear winner was Financials, which contributed an incredible 921 basis points to the overall index return. CBA was clearly the leader here, dominating everything with 457 basis points on its own. Westpac, NAB, and others also played a role, but nothing even remotely close to CBA. The Industrials and Consumer Discretionary sectors made meaningful contributions, adding 176 and 153 basis points, respectively. While Materials, Healthcare, and Energy all lagged, each detracting around 45 to 49 basis points. Looking at the final quarter of the financial year, Financials were by far the biggest player again, adding 524 basis points — more than half the quarter’s total return of 9.5%. Apart from a slight drag from the Materials sector, all other parts of the market made positive contributions. Real Estate, Technology, and Consumer Discretionary followed behind as key drivers. Once again, CBA was the largest individual contributor, adding 243 basis points in the quarter, while NAB, WBC, and Macquarie Group added a combined 384 basis points. On the other side of the ledger, key underperformers included BHP, CSL, Rio Tinto, Treasury Wine Estates, and IDP Education, which all weighed on quarterly performance.One of the most defining features of the 2025 financial year was the dominance of price momentum as a market driver — something we as traders must be aware of. Momentum strategies far outpaced more traditional, fundamental-based approaches such as Growth, Value, and Quality. The most effective signal was a nine-month momentum measure (less the most recent month), which delivered a 31.2% long-short return. The more commonly used 12-month price momentum factor was also highly effective, returning 23.6%. By contrast, short-term reversals buying last month’s losers and selling last month’s winners was the worst-performing approach, with a negative 16.4% return. Compared to the rest of the world, the Australian market was one of the strongest trades for momentum globally, well ahead of both the US and Europe, despite its relatively slow overall performance.Note: these strategies are prone to reversal, and in the early days of the new financial year, there has been a notable shift away from momentum-based trading to other areas. Now is probably too early to say whether this marks a sustained change, but it cannot be ignored, and caution is always advised.The second big story of FY26 will be CBA. CBA’s growing influence was a key story of FY25. Its weight in the index rose by an average of 2.1 percentage points across the year, reaching an average of 11.5% by June. That helped push the spread between the Financials and Resources sectors to 15.8 percentage points — the widest gap since 2018. Despite the strong cash returns, market valuations are eye-watering; at one point during June, CBA became the world’s most expensive bank on price metrics. The forward price-to-earnings multiple now sits at 18.9 times. This is well above the long-term average of 14.7 and higher than the 10-year benchmark of 16.1. Meanwhile, the dividend yield has slipped to 3.4%, down from the historical average of 4.4%. Earnings momentum remains soft, with FY25 growth estimates still tracking at 1.4%, and FY26 forecast at a moderate 5.4%. This suggests that recent gains have come more from expanding valuation multiples than from actual earnings upgrades, making the August reporting date a catalyst day for it and, by its size, the market as a whole.On the macro front, attention now turns to the Reserve Bank of Australia. The central bank cut the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.6% at its July meeting. Recent commentary from the RBA has taken on a more dovish tone, with benign inflation data and ongoing global uncertainty expected to outweigh the strength of the labour market. The RBA appears to be steering toward a neutral policy stance, and markets will be watching for further signals on how that shift will be managed. Recent economic data has been mixed. May retail sales were weaker than expected, while broader household spending indicators held up slightly better. Building approvals saw a smaller-than-hoped-for bounce, employment remains strong, but productivity is low. Inflation is now at a 3-year low and falling; all this points to underlying support from the RBA’s easing bias both now and into the first half of FY26.As we move into FY26, the key questions are:
Can fundamentals wrestle back control over momentum?
Will earnings growth catch up to price to justify valuations?
How will policy decisions from the RBA and other central banks shape investor sentiment in an ever-volatile world?
While the early signs suggest a possible rotation, the jury is still out on whether this marks a new phase for the Australian market or just a brief pause in the rally that defined FY25.
While recent data has shown core inflation moderating, core PCE is on track to average below target at just 1.6% annualised over the past three months.Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell made clear that concerns about future inflation, especially from tariffs, remain top of mind.“If you just look backwards at the data, that’s what you would say… but we have to be forward-looking,” Powell said. “We expect a meaningful amount of inflation to arrive in the coming months, and we have to take that into account.”While the economy remains strong enough to buy time, policymakers are closely monitoring how tariff-related costs evolve before shifting policy. Powell also stated that without these forward-looking risks, rates would likely already be closer to the neutral rate, which is a full 100 basis points from current levels.
2. The Unemployment Rate anchor
Powell repeatedly cited the 4.2% unemployment rate during the press conference, mentioning it six times as the primary reason for keeping rates in restrictive territory. At this level, employment is ahead of the neutral rate.“The U.S. economy is in solid shape… job creation is at a healthy level,” Powell added that real wages are rising and participation remains relatively strong. He did, however, acknowledge that uncertainty around tariffs remains a constraint on future employment intentions.If not for a decline in labour force participation in May, the unemployment rate would already be closer to 4.6%. Couple this with the continuing jobless claims ticking up and hiring rates subdued, risks are building around labour market softening.
3. Autumn Meetings are Live
While avoiding firm forward guidance, Powell hinted at a timeline:“It could come quickly. It could not come quickly… We feel like the right thing to do is to be where we are… and just learn more.”This suggests the Fed will remain on hold through the July meeting, using the summer to assess incoming data, particularly whether tariffs meaningfully push inflation higher. If those effects prove limited and unemployment begins to rise, the stage could be set for a rate cut in September.
ความประหลาดใจในกลุ่มนี้สามารถกระตุ้นให้ค่าเงินเยน JPY เคลื่อนไหวอย่างรวดเร็ว โดยเฉพาะอย่างยิ่งหากผลลัพธ์เปลี่ยนการรับรู้เกี่ยวกับความเร็วและความคงอยู่ของการปรับตัวให้เป็นปกติ BoJ
