Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday highlighted twin economic risks of a slowing labor market and rising inflation, but opened the door to rate cuts in a widely anticipated speech at the annual Jackson Hole,

If inflation starts climbing again after a rate cut, “the Fed will have to reverse course — and in the worst case, start hiking again,” Slok said.

Brent Donnelly of Spectra Markets ran a sizeable survey of expectations for Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech, and of the 473 responses, 51% expect a neutral-to-boring outcome and 43% see a hawkish tint.

Gold prices were steady on Thursday as investors awaited U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday for signals on the central bank's policy direction.