Powell will appear before the House and Senate special committees on Wednesday and Thursday to comment on the Fed’s monetary policy. Investors will be watching closely the comments on future policies and the state of the economy. There could be another interest rate hike in July. Powell can also be asked about the turmoil in the US banking sector earlier this year following the collapse of several regional banks in the US.
The European Central Bank (ECB) announced another hike last week and ECB President Christine Lagarde said a further move in July was very likely. The Bank of England will also announce a new interest rate decision next week. The UK central bank is expected to hike interest rates further on Thursday.
Calm
It’s pretty quiet on the business front. Insurer Aegon is holding an investor day on Thursday. The German automobile group Volkswagen is holding an investor day a day ahead. US parcel delivery company FedEx will also publish quarterly figures, as will international organization consultancy Accenture.
The macroeconomic data agenda includes data on the activity of European industry and services and information on consumer confidence in the euro area. Data is also reported on American industry. De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) is to publish new economic forecasts for the Netherlands on Monday.
Wall Street
Incidentally, European equity markets will have to do without any direction from Wall Street on Monday. American stock exchanges are closed that day due to Juneteenth, the commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States.
The Amsterdam AEX index rose by a fraction on Friday to 772.72 points. The main indicators of Frankfurt, London and Paris registered gains of up to 1.3%. In New York, negatives of up to 0.7% were seen on the price boards.