Last week's GDP growth figures proved that US economic performance is still pretty mediocre, bordering on mildly tepid. While the Hawks were eyeing a 2.6% growth figure, actual GDP fell short of expectations and posted a rather dismal growth rate of 2.3% annualized.
Yesterday, we got the Fed's favorite inflation indicator, Core PCE, the inflation barometer that's extracted from the GDP release. And what we got was a dismal 1.3% inflation rate (YoY). This validated, once again, that the US economy failed to reach escape velocity that would necessitate several rate hikes a year. Rather, it suggested that anything beyond one or two rate hikes was unnecessary. Hardly a hawkish sign, yet Dollar demand keeps on rising while US yields move lower. It is this very combination that suggests that Dollar demand is being stirred by the demand of US Treasuries. Some say that this is investors moving into safety amid the rout in Chinese markets. Well, that's probably true, at least, in part. But the rest? There's a big bet on what China will do next. Continue reading "Dollar's Fate To Be Decided In Beijing?"
