MARKET CALL: Will Powell Be Hawkish, Dovish, Or Owlish In The Grand Tetons?

The 2025 Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium will focus on "Labor Markets in Transition: Demographics, Productivity, and Macroeconomic Policy." The symposium is scheduled for August 21-23. It's an annual event hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, bringing together central bankers, policymakers, economists, and academics to discuss important economic issues and long-term policy challenges. 

Fed Chair Jerome Powell will speak at 10 a.m. on Friday, August 22. His speech is titled "Economic Outlook and Framework Review.” So he will likely discuss the current controversies about the economy, the labor market, inflation, and how the Fed should respond to them. Will he turn more dovish in reaction to July's weak jobs report? Or will he remain hawkish by reiterating that the Fed is in no rush to cut the federal funds rate because inflation remains about a percentage point above the Fed's 2.0% y/y inflation target?