Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, February 27:
1. Fed Chair Powell Goes To Capitol Hill
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will deliver his first semi-annual monetary policy testimony when he appears before the House Financial Services Committee, at 10:00AM ET (1500GMT). Text of the testimony will be released 90 minutes before he starts speaking at 8:30AM ET (1330GMT).
Powell's comments will be monitored closely for any new insight on his views on the recent uptick in inflation and how that can potentially affect the Fed's current rate-hiking path. Investors will also be watching for comments on the markets themselves, in light of the recent bout of increased volatility.
Following Powell's morning testimony, two former Fed chairs will make a public appearance Tuesday afternoon. Former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke interviews former Fed Chair Janet Yellen in an event at the Brookings Institution at 2PM ET (1800GMT). It will be Yellen’s first public appearance since leaving her post at the top of the central bank earlier this month.
2. Dollar Treads Water Ahead of Data, Powell
The dollar was little changed, as investors awaited a slew of economic data and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's testimony, which could determine whether the U.S. currency's recovery from a three-year low has more room to run.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, held steady around the 89.75-mark, remaining well above a three-year trough near 88.15 set on Feb. 16.
Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield inched up a tad to 2.87%, staying within sight of a four-year high of 2.957% reached last Wednesday.
Economic reports Tuesday include durable goods orders at 8:30AM ET (1330GMT), followed by a reading on home prices from S&P/Case-Shiller at 9AM ET (1400GMT) and the Conference Board’s consumer confidence survey at 10AM ET (1500GMT).
3. Global Stocks Slip As Rally Runs Out Of Steam
Global equities slipped as a recent rally ran out of steam ahead of Jerome Powell's first congressional testimony as Fed chair.
Asian markets ended broadly lower, with mainland Chinese shares faring the worst, closing down 1.1% as it ended a six-day winning streak. Japan, though, held up as the Nikkei finished with a 1.1% gain.
In Europe, the pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.2% lower in mid-morning trade, with the various sectors moving in different directions. Media stocks outperformed in early deals following news that U.S. media giant Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) is making a proposed cash offer to buy Sky (LON:SKYB) for 22.1 billion pounds ($31 billion). Sky shares jumped on the news and hit the top of the European benchmark, up 18%.
Meanwhile, on Wall Street, U.S. stock futures pushed lower, threatening to break a string of three winning sessions. Dow futures were down nearly 60 points, or around 0.2%, while S&P 500 futures declined 7 points, or about 0.3%. Nasdaq 100 futures lost 17 points, or roughly 0.3%.
Earnings ahead of bell are expected from Macy's (NYSE:M), AutoZone (NYSE:AZO), Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) and SeaWorld (NYSE:SEAS). After the bell, Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY), Square (NYSE:SQ), Hertz Global (NYSE:HTZ) and Weight Watchers (NYSE:WTW) report.
U.S. stocks soared on Monday, with each of the major U.S. indexes rising more than 1%.
4. Bitcoin Jumps Towards $11K Amid Broad Crypto Rally
Bitcoin jumped back toward the $11,000-level, amid broad gains in the cryptocurrency market. The world's biggest virtual currency by market cap surged around 13% to $10,743, marking a gain of more than $1,100.
Other major cryptocurrencies also traded higher, with Ethereum, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, rising about 5.5% to $890.36.
The third largest cryptocurrency Ripple rallied roughly 8% to trade at $0.94981.
Sentiment improved after cross-border currency exchange company Circle announced that it is acquiring Poloniex, a leading cryptocurrency trading platform.
5. Oil Snaps Win Streak As Focus Shifts to U.S. Supply Data
Oil prices slipped following a three-day rally, as investors looked ahead to weekly data from the U.S. on stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of demand in the world’s largest energy consumer.
Industry group the American Petroleum Institute is due to release its weekly report at 4:30PM ET (2130GMT), amid forecasts for an oil-stock gain of around 2.6 million barrels.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures shed 19 cents, or 0.3%, to $63.72 per barrel, while Brent futures dipped 12 cents, or 0.2%, to $67.17 per barrel.
Both benchmarks hit their highest level in almost three weeks on Monday amid growing optimism that rebalancing in crude markets are well underway thanks to OPEC-led production cuts.