Gold and silver spot values are edging lower in early trading on Wednesday as investors await the release of the latest FOMC minutes. This week, generally speaking, has been somewhat slow and lacking any new, important fundamental inputs.
The crisis in Ukraine is still being heavily watched by the investing community but has thus far stayed mostly out of the news this week. Earlier this week, Russian president Vladimir Putin called for troops stationed along the Ukrainian border to withdraw from their positions. Up until recently, the provocative Russian government was building up a strong military presence along the Ukrainian border for the sole purpose of putting pressure on the Ukrainian military. Now that the Russian military has since taken a step back, many believe that the Ukrainian military now has more leeway to more readily oust the pro-Russian rebels who have taken up post in much of southern and eastern Ukraine.
Investors Await All-Important FOMC Data
This week is not expected to emit a large quantity of US economic data, and for that reason today’s release of the FOMC minutes will be especially important to investors. Though there are no monetary policy changes expected to come as a result of the minutes, investors are always interested in what the United States’ central bank has to say about monetary policy and the economy in general. The likely outcome of the minutes’ release will more than likely be a reiteration of the Fed’s positive outlook on the US economy. It seems as though investors are already expecting the minutes to reiterate the Fed’s upbeat outlook on the US economy as equity prices are trading higher across the board in early trading.
Falling bond yields are becoming a periphery issue for investors who are concerned that the US economy is not nearly as strong as a lot of market analysts are claiming. Bond yields have long been a good way to determine the overall strength of an economy and, as such, it is important for investors to keep a close eye on any and all US Treasury bonds.
Apart from today’s FOMC minutes, there really isn’t all that much economic data on the slate for the rest of the week.