Precious metals, U.S. equities, U.S. debt instruments, and the dollar continue a major recalibration as market participants factor in interest rates moving much higher for longer than anticipated before Jerome Powell’s Keynote speech on Friday of last week.

Gold prices continue to trade under pressure resulting in another double-digit price decline today. As of 5:23 PM EDT gold futures basis, the most active December 2022 Comex contract is trading down by $13.60 or 0.78% and currently fixed at $1722.70. Just as in yesterday’s trading activity current pricing is just above the daily low of $1720.60.

As of 5:05 PM EDT gold futures basis, the most active December Comex contract is currently fixed at $1735.60 after factoring in today’s decline of $14.10 or 0.81%. September silver is also trading lower with the most active futures contract currently fixed at $18.50 after factoring in today’s decline of $0.407 or 2.19%.

Powell’s resolute keynote speech on Friday shook the financial markets to their core. The effect that Chairman Powell had when he rebuffed expectations of the Fed’s tempered monetary policy was strong. His message underscored that the Federal Reserve will continue its hawkish monetary policy and keep raising interest rates in its fight against the spiraling level of inflation.

Chairman Powell delivered a resolute keynote speech at this year’s Jackson Hole Economic Symposium this morning that shook the financial markets to their core. In essence, his message underscored that the Federal Reserve will continue its hawkish monetary policy and keep raising interest rates in its fight against the spiraling level of inflation.

Each year the Kansas City Federal Reserve hosts one of the most important economic symposiums in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. This major event is attended by the top central bankers in the United States and globally. This year’s event, the 2022 Economic Policy Symposium, "Reassessing Constraints on the Economy and Policy," will be held August 25-27.

This year’s Jackson Hole Symposium will unquestionably be the most important event this month. Central bankers and analysts will face a unique economic backdrop much different than last year’s symposium. Last year inflation was running at approximately 5% and the assumption amongst the vast majority of central bankers and policymakers was that inflation was transitory.

During the March FOMC meeting, the Federal Reserve raised its key Fed funds rates by 25 basis points, marking the first rate hike by the Federal Reserve since 2018. This was the beginning of the Federal Reserve pivoting from an extremely accommodative monetary policy to a policy of monetary tightening.

A lot has changed in how gold trades on the futures market. Gold futures used to open and close daily leaving a time when you could not place trades at the market, similar to the way stocks trade today.

Yes, gold has declined for the last five consecutive days. On Monday, August 15 gold opened at approximately $1816 per ounce and scored strong price declines over the last five consecutive days, characterized by four lower highs, and four lower lows taking the most active December contract of gold futures to $1760 with under a half hour of trading before closing for the weekend.