Macro Outlook for Next Week: Fed Meeting Approaching, Silver Enters Trillion-Digit Era, Will Trump Add Fuel to the Fire?

PANews, January 24th - After threatening Federal Reserve Chairman Powell and forcibly taking control of Venezuelan President Maduro, US President Trump seems to be adding another "bombshell" to the market. This week, another astonishing market fluctuation triggered by Trump has occurred. However, even Trump's latest "backing down" hasn't deterred gold and silver bulls, who have pushed precious metals to the next milestone: silver has surpassed $100, and gold is very close to $5000. Looking ahead to next week, market volatility is unlikely to lessen. Weekend anxieties and a generally tense atmosphere surrounding Iran are fueling market activity, especially with the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting approaching and Trump preparing to announce his nominee for the next Fed Chair. Here are the key points the market will focus on in the coming week:

At 23:00 on Tuesday, the US Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index for January and the US Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index for January will be released.

At 03:00 on Thursday, the Federal Reserve FOMC will announce its interest rate decision.

Powell will hold a monetary policy press conference at 03:30 on Thursday.

At 21:30 on Thursday, the US initial jobless claims for the week ending January 24 and the US trade balance for November will be released.

At 21:30 on Friday, the US December PPI data and Canada's November GDP month-on-month rate will be released.

The US January Chicago PMI data will be released at 22:45 on Friday.

Next week's biggest highlight may not come from the Federal Reserve or the data. Trump will likely try to steal Powell's thunder by announcing his nominee for Powell in May. It is believed that Trump has narrowed down his choices to four candidates: White House economic advisor Hassett, Federal Reserve Governor Waller, former Federal Reserve Governor Warsh, and Rick Reid, BlackRock's chief bond investment manager, who recently joined the list.