US: Focus on Powell’s semi-annual Congressional testimony - TDS

Analysts at TD Securities suggest that in the US, Fed Chairman Powell will kick off his semi-annual Congressional testimony with an appearance before the Senate Banking Panel at 10:00 ET and will be a key economic event for today.

Key Quotes

“Expect him to emphasize patience. He will not front-run the FOMC and announce anything new on the balance sheet, other than repeating that runoff could end this year.”

“On the data front, markets expect December housing starts to edge lower to a 1250k pace, down 0.5% on the month, while permits are expected to post a slightly larger 2.8% decline to 1290k. These data give the first update on residential construction since the government shutdown.”

“Conference Board consumer confidence will round out the data flow, with the market looking for the index to recover to 124.1 in February after a 16-point plunge over the past two months.”