Data on Tuesday showed U.S. retail sales unexpectedly rose in August, suggesting the economy remained on solid footing for much of the third quarter.

U.S. retail sales rose 0.1% in August, beating expectations of -0.2% and revised up from 1% to 1.1%. Retail sales, excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services, rose 0.3% last month after an upwardly revised 0.4% in July. Core retail sales are most consistent with the consumer spending component of GDP. Consumer spending accelerated in the second quarter, putting it on a higher growth path heading into the July-September quarter.

After the data was released, the U.S. dollar index rose nearly 20 points in the short term, and spot gold fell by $8 in the short term, falling below $2,570 at one point, and then rebounded quickly.

The release of "the last important data before the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision" comes as investors widely expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates for the first time since 2020, when it announces its latest policy decision at 2 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday.

Institutional analysts commented on the U.S. retail sales data, saying it is unlikely to have much impact on this week's FOMC policy report.

Markets have been debating how deep the Fed will cut rates. With signs of a slowing labor market and inflation falling toward the Fed's 2% target, markets have been pricing in a 50 basis point cut.

According to CME's FedWatch tool, there is a 67% chance that the Fed will cut interest rates by 50 basis points, while there is a 33% chance that the Fed will opt for a smaller cut of 25 basis points.

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The article is forwarded from: Jinshi Data