Rally continues after Trump picks Powell as Fed Chair

US stocks continued advancing last week and the ICE US dollar index ended fractionally higher as House Republicans unveiled the tax overhaul plan and President Trump nominated Jerome Powell as the new Fed chairman. The SP 500 rose 0.3% and the ICE dollar index added 0.06% for the week.

The SP 500 advanced in all sessions last week except Monday. It fell 0.3% Monday on a report House of Representatives was considering phasing in a cut to corporate taxes rather than enacting it immediately.

The ICE US dollar index advanced in every session last week except Monday and Thursday. It lost 0.4% on Monday after reports President Trump was leaning toward Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell as the next chair of the central bank. The dollar climbed 0.3% on Wednesday on hawkish Fed statement which said US economic activity has been rising at a “solid rate” instead of describing growth as “moderate” as in its September statement. These reinforced expectations of a third rate hike in December as signaled by the central bank in previous statements. The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged in a range of 1%-1.25%. The dollar rose 0.2% last Friday after employment data showed the jobless rate declined from 4.2% to 4.1% in October, a 17-year low. The fall in unemployment and addition of 261 thousand new jobs on non-farm payrolls in October boosted expectations for a rise in US interest rates in December.

US tax plan progress and earnings reports will remain major market drivers this week against the backdrop of President Trump’s trade and security talks on his Asia trip. Two major central banks will meet this week: the Reserve Bank of Australia on Tuesday, and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Wednesday. No changes in central bank policies are expected.