U.S. Dollar Climbs As Investors Await Powell's Speech

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar appreciated against its major counterparts in the European session on Friday, ahead of a speech by the Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell at Jackson Hole Economic Symposium that is expected to offer clarity on the pace of rate hikes in the future.

Powell is expected to adopt a hawkish stance on interest rates and indicate that the central bank is likely to continue with its aggressive rate hike plan to tame inflation.

Investors digested Thursday's data showing a drop in jobless claims last week and a lower than expected contraction in the economy in the second quarter.

The Federal Reserve's preferred gauge of inflation, the PCE price index, is due at 8:30 am ET.

The core PCE price index is expected to ease to 4.7 percent year-on-year in July from 4.8 percent last month.

The greenback edged up to 137.13 against the yen and 0.9657 against the franc, from its previous lows of 136.42 and 0.9624, respectively.The next possible resistance for the greenback is seen around 139.00 against the yen and 0.98 against the franc.

The greenback touched 2-day highs of 0.9947 against the euro and 1.1775 against the pound, off its early lows of 0.9977 and 1.1838, respectively. The greenback is seen finding resistance around 0.97 against the euro and 1.15 against the pound.

The greenback advanced to 0.6951 against the aussie, 1.2958 against the loonie and 0.6188 against the kiwi, recovering from its prior lows of 0.6982, 1.2922 and 0.6229, respectively. If the greenback rises further, it may find resistance around 0.67 against the aussie, 1.32 against the loonie and 0.60 against the kiwi.

Looking ahead, U.S. personal income and spending data and wholesale inventories for July and University of Michigan's final consumer sentiment index for August will be featured in the New York session.

At 10:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak about the economic outlook at the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium, in Wyoming.