08.25.
The Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole symposium took place tensely, as Chair Jerome Powell signaled a possible rate cut at the upcoming September policy meeting despite clear divisions among policymakers.
By many fundamental metrics, US stocks have reached record levels of expensiveness, making the market pricier than during any past bubble.
08.26.
Trump fired Fed Board member Lisa Cook. Gold prices reached a two-week high amid Trump’s escalating conflict with the Fed.
Intel warned that the deal with the Trump administration to purchase 10% of the company’s shares carries risks for shareholders. The key area of concern is international sales: according to SEC data, 76% of Intel’s revenue in the last fiscal year came from abroad. Trump wants Intel to refocus on the domestic market. INTEL shares fell to 24.53.
08.27.
The US has imposed a steep 50% tariff on Indian goods — up from 25% earlier and covering over 55% of exports worth $87.4 billion in 2024 — to punish New Delhi for buying Russian oil, straining economic ties
Trump said he’s ready for a legal fight after moving to oust Fed Governor Lisa Cook over alleged mortgage fraud, a first-ever move that could give him a Fed board majority and raise concerns over central bank independence.
Vice President Antoine Martin said Switzerland will avoid deflation despite 39% US tariffs, with rates staying at 0% and tougher UBS capital rules deemed necessary for stability.
Blackstone is in talks with banks to amend and extend its $957 million Interplex loan by five years and boost it to $997 million, as private equity firms face refinancing pressures; Blackstone shares closed at $171.43.
08.28.
Nvidia gave a muted revenue forecast, signaling a slowdown in growth. That raised concerns that the massive growth in AI spending is starting to slow — BBG Nvidia shares are down 2.02% premarket.
Japan’s top trade negotiator cancels US trip over trade deal disagreement, some issues need more discussions – CNBC.
The EU plans to scrap all tariffs on America’s industrial goods this week as part of a trade deal.
Foreign central banks now hold more gold than US Treasuries.
08.29.
Gold Beats Treasuries for the First Time in 30 Years
For the first time since 1996, foreign central banks now hold more gold than US Treasuries. (https://www.fxstreet.com/analysis/for-first-time-in-nearly-30-years-foreign-central-banks-hold-more-gold-than-us-treasuries-202508281700)
Over the past three years, central banks have added over 3,000 tonnes of gold to their reserves. 2022 alone marked the largest annual net purchase on record since 1950. For context: between 2010 and 2021, average yearly additions were just 473 tonnes.
At the same time, dollar holdings are steadily eroding. Today, the greenback makes up 57.8% of global reserves, down from 72% in 2002 and the lowest share since 1994.
JPMorgan expects this structural trend to continue, projecting gold prices could surge toward $4,000/oz by mid-2026 as reserves rebalance.
09.01.
Domestic job growth slowed in August with economists projecting 75,000 new positions and unemployment edging up to 4.3%, setting the stage for a pivotal Fed meeting on September 17–18.
09.02.
Western officials expressed concern that the leaders of Russia, China, and India demonstrated rare unity at the SCO summit, which was perceived as a direct challenge to Trump’s foreign policy.
According to Bloomberg (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-09-02/euro-zone-inflation-quickens-beyond-2-backing-ecb-rate-pause), inflation in the eurozone has started to accelerate. This factor increases expectations of a pause in the ECB rate at the next meeting.
September 11 — RTRS analysts predict that the ECB will leave the rate unchanged.
According to Goldman Sachs, the rate cut cycle is over, and the current level will remain for a long time.
09.03.
The World Gold Council will launch (https://www.ft.com/content/7d15b6b6-0a55-4b94-bb6e-de3b325c3b42) a digital form of gold.
Morgan (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-09-02/morgan-stanley-s-wilson-says-us-stock-rally-has-further-to-run) forecasts further growth of the US500 amid upcoming Fed rate cuts and strong earnings reports from U.S. companies.
Judging by the rapid surge in 30-year government bond yields to their highest level since 1998, the UK may indeed soon need IMF assistance to stabilize its public finances.
09.04.
Bearish bets on National’s Treasuries have surged to their highest since February, with traders bracing for Friday’s jobs report (forecast +75,000; below 40,000 could spark a 50bp cut, above 130,000 could erase cut expectations).
JPMorgan will launch its Chase digital consumer bank in Germany next year to tap Europe’s largest retail market, competing with BBVA and Deutsche Bank, with its stock closing today at $299.51.
APPLE is developing an AI-powered web search tool called World Knowledge Answers to revamp Siri and challenge OpenAI and Perplexity, with its stock closing today at $238.47.
A US jury ordered GOOGLE to pay $425 million in a class action over secretly collecting user data despite privacy settings being turned off, though the company plans to appeal.
Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP)
NFP shows how many jobs the US economy (outside farming & gov) created last month. It’s been published since 1939 and comes out every first Friday. Over the decades, it’s become the single most-watched macro report.
🛫 Why so big? Because jobs = growth = inflation = Fed policy. Strong hiring pushes the Fed toward rate hikes, weak hiring points to cuts. And since the Fed drives global liquidity, the ripple hits every market.
⚡️ What moves:
🟢 Gold and oil often jump when the dollar dives.
🟢 Stocks can even cheer bad data if it means “cheaper money.”
09.05.
Concerns about inflation, the financial crisis, the independence of the Federal Reserve, and geopolitical instability are casting doubt on the stability of long-term Treasury bonds. In response, many central banks are returning to gold.
UK firms have been cutting jobs faster since 2021 and delivering the bleakest employment outlook since the pandemic, according to the Bank of England.
Chinese stocks fell sharply today on news that Beijing plans to cool the market. Authorities are concerned about the rapid surge, reminiscent of the 2015 bubble that triggered a deep selloff.
