The U.S. dollar nudged higher Wednesday as investors awaited the release of the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting minutes and the upcoming Jackson Hole symposium for insights on future monetary policy.
At 04:55 ET (08:55 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, was up 0.1% at 98.190, following gains of 0.4% over the first two trading days of the week.
Market Focus on Fed Minutes
With little change in the Ukraine situation over the past day, attention has shifted to the Fed’s minutes, due later in the session. The central bank has held its policy rate at 4.25%-4.50% throughout 2025, though some officials—including Chair Jerome Powell—have voiced concerns that tariffs under the Trump administration could reignite inflation.
However, the Fed has faced criticism from President Donald Trump, and a few policymakers have broken ranks by calling for lower interest rates. The upcoming minutes may shed light on these internal divisions, following dissent by Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman—the first time two voting Fed officials opposed the majority since 1993.
“These minutes will air more of the views of the two dissenters (Waller and Bowman) who voted for a rate cut in July,” analysts at ING said. “Market moves, however, may be limited given that the July jobs report was released a few days later. A much better read on the Fed situation should emerge on Friday afternoon during Chair Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole.”
The annual Jackson Hole gathering begins with informal interviews, ahead of the formal agenda release Thursday evening. Powell’s keynote on Friday will focus on the U.S. economic outlook. “In all, we don’t see the need for big DXY moves today and struggle to see it breaking above 98.50/60 resistance,” ING added.
Sterling Rises After UK CPI Jump
In Europe, EUR/USD slipped 0.1% to 1.1638 in quiet trading. Eurozone inflation figures are expected later in the session, with forecasts suggesting annual CPI remained steady at 2.0% in July, aligned with the ECB’s medium-term target.
“EUR/USD should continue to trade in narrow ranges and we do not see the need for it to break under 1.1590/1600 today,” ING noted.
Meanwhile, GBP/USD gained 0.1% to 1.3497 following the release of UK inflation data, which showed consumer prices rose 3.8% in July from 3.6% in June, exceeding the 3.7% consensus estimate. This marked the highest headline CPI since January 2024. Analysts at Capital Economics said that a November rate cut is still possible but warned that rising inflation expectations and wage growth could delay further easing until 2026.
Other Currencies Move
The Japanese yen edged lower, with USD/JPY down 0.1% at 147.58. USD/CNY dipped slightly to 7.1787 after the People’s Bank of China left the one-year Loan Prime Rate at 3.0% and the five-year at 3.5%, in line with expectations.
The Australian dollar slipped 0.3% to 0.6434, while the New Zealand dollar dropped sharply, with NZD/USD down 1.3% to 0.5818—the lowest since mid-April—after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand cut its official cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.00%. The central bank signaled that further easing is possible if inflation pressures continue to ease. The Monetary Policy Committee voted 4-2 in favor of the cut, with two members preferring a larger 50-basis-point reduction.
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