Here are the key events taking place on Friday which could affect transactions. Jerome Powell: The chairman of the Federal Reserve remarks to investors and economists will be the event at the Fed’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole. People will be looking for clues about where the Fed is headed on interest rates, especially how high and for how long. With inflation hovering around 9%, Powell will likely stress that the Fed is determined to bring it down to its 2% target, no matter what it takes. FED’S POWELL AT JACKSON HOLE IN THE COURT WITH EPISODES Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Newsroom) The annual symposium is entitled “Rethinking Constraints in Economics and Politics” and will run until August 27. The Fed’s favorite inflation gauge and a look at consumer sentiment also await investors on Friday morning. INCOME & SPENDING: Economists polled by Refinitiv expect spending to rise 0.4% month-on-month in July, up from June’s 0.2% growth. Personal income, meanwhile, is expected to jump 0.6% in July, equal to June’s gain. Woman in cafe shopping online with laptop. (iStock) This brings us to the PCE price index, a measure of inflation that is beginning to rival the consumer price index in popularity. It jumped 1.0% month-on-month in June and is up 6.8% since June 2021. GDP shrank AT A REVISED 0.6% IN THE SECOND QUARTER The core PCE price index, which factors in volatile food and energy prices, is expected to rise 0.3% in July. The year-over-year change in the Core PCE Price Index, the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation, is expected to decline for the fourth time in 5 months to 4.7%. CONSUMER SENTIMENT: The University of Michigan’s final index for August is expected to rise to 55.2, up from a higher-than-expected preliminary reading of 55.1 two weeks ago. It would also mark the second increase since the record low. GAP INC.: Shares rebounded 8% in pemarket trading despite the retailer missing its annual forecast as the chain struggles to sell outdated Old Navy items while inventory piles up as high inflation forces people to reduce discretionary spending. Purchases from the Gap Inc. clothing store. (Dimas Ardian / Getty Images / Getty Images) Gap, which beat quarterly revenue estimates, said sales trends improved in July and August, coinciding with falling gas prices. The shift in consumer preferences led to a 13% drop in second-quarter sales at Gap’s Old Navy brand. The company’s net loss was $49 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with net income of $258 million, or 67 cents per share, a year earlier. Gap, which recorded a $58 million inventory impairment charge, said shares at the end of the second quarter were 37 percent higher than a year ago. Total revenue of $3.86 billion beat estimates of $3.82 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. DELL TECHNOLOGIES: Shares fell 4% in premarket trading after the company posted its slowest revenue growth in six quarters. Dell’s revenue rose 9 percent to $26.43 billion in the quarter and was roughly in line with market expectations, according to data from Refinitiv. Dell Technologies Inc. is close to a deal to sell its Boomi cloud business to private equity firms Francisco Partners and TPG, according to people familiar with the matter, part of a larger restructuring of the giant’s computing and data storage business. (Dell Technologies) Consumer revenue fell 9%, but orders from businesses preparing for the era of hybrid work pushed Dell’s commercial revenue up 15% to $12.1 billion. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT FOX BUSINESS Excluding items, Dell earned $1.68 per share.
