All eyes are on the Jackson Hole - ANZ

Analysts at ANZ explained that speakers and data releases were absent and price action in markets was underwhelming, with most participants focused on Yellen’s Jackson Hole speech at the end of the week.

Key Quotes:

"Ever so slowly, the market does seem to be reluctantly acknowledging the chorus of senior Fed speakers who have suggested recently that a 2016 rate hike is still quite probable and September is ‘live’. But in reality, the response has been very muted (September priced at roughly 25%, December at approximately 50%).

That may well change following Fed Chair Yellen’s Jackson Hole speech on Friday (early Saturday Australian time), with the potential for strong data prints in the first half of September and the end of the holiday season next week also likely to impact.

But for now, price action remains orderly. Stocks were down a touch overnight. Oil eased approximately 2% with WTI falling to roughly USD47 per barrel. The yield on the 10-yr Treasury note rallied strongly and now sits at the low end of its two week (upward sloping) trading band. Gold is off a tad. RBNZ Governor Wheeler this morning confirmed “we remain committed to the inflation goals in the Policy Targets Agreement. We do not believe that the outlook and balance of risks warrants a position of no policy change, nor a position of rapid easings”."