Author: Anum Qudsia Siddiqui

This week has been bustling with significant financial market movements, capturing the attention of investors worldwide.

From record-breaking performances on Wall Street to the highly anticipated public debut of Reddit, there’s no shortage of pivotal moments. We also witnessed gold prices soaring to new heights, indicating a shift towards safe-haven assets amid ongoing economic uncertainties. Additionally, the forex markets saw notable fluctuations, particularly with the GBP/USD pair, as it rebounded from a recent dip.

The rollercoaster week on Wall Street ended with a thud as chip stocks took a nosedive and mixed jobs data painted a confusing picture of the economy. Investors grappled with the implications – could rising interest rates derail the recent rally?

This week, all eyes turn to inflation reports, the key puzzle piece that could determine the Fed’s next move and the fate of the markets.

Last week, markets were a bit like a see-saw, with small ups and downs as everyone waited for important economic news. On Thursday, we got some of that news: inflation data (Core CPI) met expectations, while consumer sentiment took a surprise dip and manufacturing activity slowed a bit. This hints that maybe the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates in June, which got investors excited!

This excitement caused a late-week rally, boosting major indexes and even helping the Nasdaq Composite set a new record.

Last week witnessed a remarkable surge in stock markets, with the S&P 500, the Nasdaq, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average all reaching unprecedented highs.

Looking ahead to this week for February 26 – March 1st, markets are bracing for potentially unforeseen behaviors influenced by upcoming economic releases. We’ve outlined five key releases for the week that are recommended to be closely monitored.

This week marks the midpoint of February 2024, and it’s shaping up to be quite eventful in terms of economic developments. Over the coming days, we anticipate several releases that could impact assets such as $GBPUSD, $EURUSD, and the Dow Jones, Nasdaq, DAX30, and SPX500 indices. Below, we outline their potential outcomes and precise release times and dates so you can plan your trading strategies with NAGA based on the top economic events of the week.

On Monday, our focus should be on the speech by BoE Governor Andrew Bailey. It’s likely that during his address, the Bank of England representative will touch upon the topic of the key interest rate, currently standing at 5.25%. Previously, the bank’s head stated that he is less concerned about inflation, which is gradually decreasing. Therefore, if the market receives concrete signals about a rate cut at the next meeting in March, it could affect assets such as the FTSE100 and $GBPUSD, supporting stocks and putting pressure on the pound.

US30 1-Hour Timeframe, 08 February 2024

The US30 on a 1-hour timeframe has moved in a volatile uptrend since the recent low plotted on 18 January. On 2 February, the US30 reached a new all-time high of 38 784.3. This move dethroned the 31 January all-time high at 38 609.2.