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Washington’s police department chief said that a Trump administration order installing a federal official as its head would upend command structure and be a “dangerous” threat to law and order. Police Chief Pamela Smith’s statement came in a court filing as the city seeks to block the federal takeover of its police department in court. Washington’s top legal official sought an emergency restraining order in federal court blocking a Trump administration move to put a federal official in charge of its police. District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues the police takeover is illegal and threatens to “wreak operational havoc.” The lawsuit comes after U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Thursday night that Drug Enforcement Administration boss Terry Cole will assume the police chief’s duties and approval authority for any orders issued to officers. It was unclear where the move left the city’s current police chief, Smith, who works for the mayor. Schwalb argues the new order goes beyond Trump’s authority and implementing it would “sow chaos” in the Metropolitan Police Department. “The administration’s unlawful actions are an affront to the dignity and autonomy of the 700,000 Americans who call D.C. home. This is the gravest threat to Home Rule that the District has ever faced, and we are fighting to stop it,” Schwalb said. The Justice Department declined to comment on the district’s lawsuit, and a White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment Friday morning. The police takeover is the latest move by Trump to test the limits of his legal authorities to carry out his agenda, relying on obscure statutes and a supposed state of emergency to bolster his tough-on-crime message and his plans to speed up the mass deportation of people in the United States illegally. It also marks one of the most sweeping assertions of federal authority over a local government in modern times. While Washington has grappled with spikes in violence and visible homelessness, the city’s homicide rate ranks below those of several other major U.S. cities, and the capital is not in the throes of the public safety collapse the Trump administration has portrayed. Chief had agreed to share immigration information Schwalb had said late Thursday that Bondi’s directive was “unlawful,” arguing it could not be followed by the city’s police force. He wrote in a memo to Smith that “members of MPD must continue to follow your orders and not the orders of any official not appointed by the Mayor,” setting up the legal clash between the heavily Democratic district and the Republican administration. The district’s attorney general is an elected position and the city’s top legal officer. It’s separate from federal U.S. attorney appointed by the president to serve in Washington, a role now filled by former Fox News Channel host and judge Jeanine Pirro. Trump also appointed Bondi as U.S. attorney general, the nation’s top law enforcement official. Bondi’s directive came even after Smith had told MPD officers hours earlier to share information with immigration agencies regarding people not in custody, such as someone involved in a traffic stop or checkpoint. The Justice Department said Bondi disagreed with the police chief’s directive because it allowed for continued enforcement of “sanctuary policies,” which generally limit cooperation by local law enforcement with federal immigration officers. Bondi said she was rescinding that order as well as other MPD policies limiting inquires into immigration status and preventing arrests based solely on federal immigration warrants. All new directives must now receive approval from Cole, the attorney general said. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser pushed back Thursday, writing on social media that “there is no statute that conveys the District’s personnel authority to a federal official.” The president has more power over the nation’s capital than other cities, but D.C. has elected its own mayor and city council since the Home Rule Act was signed in 1973. Trump is the first president to exert control over the city’s police force since it was passed. The law limits that control to 30 days without congressional approval, though Trump has suggested he’d seek to extend it. Schwalb argues the president’s role is narrow under the law, limited to requiring the mayor to provide police services for federal purposes. Residents are seeing a significant show of force A population already tense from days of ramp-up has begun seeing more significant shows of force across the city. National Guard troops watched over some of the world’s most renowned landmarks and Humvees took position in front of the busy main train station. Volunteers helped homeless people leave long-standing encampments — to where was often unclear. Department of Homeland Security police stood outside Nationals Park during a game Thursday between the Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies. DEA agents patrolled The Wharf, a popular nightlife area, while Secret Service officers were seen in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood. Bowser, walking a tightrope between the Republican White House and the constituency of her largely Democratic city, was out of town Thursday for a family commitment in Martha’s Vineyard but would be back Friday, her office said. The uptick in visibility of federal forces around the city, including in many high-traffic areas, has been striking to residents going about their lives. Trump has the power to take over federal law enforcement for 30 days before his actions must be reviewed by Congress, though he has said he’ll re-evaluate as that deadline approaches. Officers set up a checkpoint in one of D.C.’s popular nightlife areas, drawing protests. Troops were stationed outside the Union Station transportation hub as the 800 Guard members who have been activated by Trump started in on missions that include monument security, community safety patrols and beautification efforts, the Pentagon said. Troops will assist law enforcement in a variety of roles, including traffic control posts and crowd control, National Guard Major Micah Maxwell said. The Guard members have been trained in de-escalation tactics and crowd control equipment, Maxwell said. National Guard troops are a semi-regular presence in D.C., typically being used during mass public events like the annual July 4 celebration. They have

Elon Musk has a moonshot vision of life with AI: The technology will take all our jobs, while a “universal high income” will mean anyone can access a theoretical abundance of goods and services. Provided Musk’s lofty dream could even become a reality, there would, of course, be a profound existential reckoning. “The question will really be one of meaning,” Musk said at the Viva Technology conference in May 2024. “If a computer can do—and the robots can do—everything better than you … does your life have meaning?”  But most industry leaders aren’t asking themselves this question about the endgame of AI, according to Nobel laureate and “godfather of AI” Geoffrey Hinton. When it comes to developing AI, Big Tech is less interested in the long-term consequences of the technology—and more concerned with quick results. “For the owners of the companies, what’s driving the research is short-term profits,” Hinton, a professor emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto, told Fortune. And for the developers behind the technology, Hinton said, the focus is similarly on the work immediately in front of them, not on the final outcome of the research itself. “Researchers are interested in solving problems that have their curiosity. It’s not like we start off with the same goal of, what’s the future of humanity going to be?” Hinton said. “We have these little goals of, how would you make it? Or, how should you make your computer able to recognize things in images? How would you make a computer able to generate convincing videos?” he added. “That’s really what’s driving the research.”  Hinton has long warned about the dangers of AI without guardrails and intentional evolution, estimating a 10% to 20% chance of the technology wiping out humans after the development of superintelligence. In 2023—10 years after he sold his neural network company DNNresearch to Google—Hinton left his role at the tech giant, wanting to freely speak out about the dangers of the technology and fearing the inability to “prevent the bad actors from using it for bad things.” Hinton’s AI big picture For Hinton, the dangers of AI fall into two categories: the risk the technology itself poses to the future of humanity, and the consequences of AI being manipulated by people with bad intent. “There’s a big distinction between two different kinds of risk,” he said. “There’s the risk of bad actors misusing AI, and that’s already here. That’s already happening with things like fake videos and cyberattacks, and may happen very soon with viruses. And that’s very different from the risk of AI itself becoming a bad actor.” Financial institutions like Ant International in Singapore, for example, have sounded the alarms about the proliferation of deepfakes increasing the threat of scams or fraud. Tianyi Zhang, general manager of risk management and cybersecurity at Ant International, told Fortune the company found that more than 70% of new enrollments in some markets were potential deepfake attempts.  “We’ve identified more than 150 types of deepfake attacks,” he said. Beyond advocating for more regulation, Hinton’s call to action to address AI’s potential for misdeeds is a steep battle because each problem with the technology requires a discrete solution, he said. He envisions a provenance-like authentication of videos and images in the future that would combat the spread of deepfakes.  Just as printers added names to their works after the advent of the printing press hundreds of years ago, media sources will similarly need to find a way to add their signatures to their authentic works. But Hinton said fixes can only go so far. “That problem can probably be solved, but the solution to that problem doesn’t solve the other problems,” he said. For the risk AI itself poses, Hinton believes tech companies need to fundamentally change how they view their relationship to AI. When AI achieves superintelligence, he said, it will not only surpass human capabilities, but have a strong desire to survive and gain additional control. The current framework around AI—that humans can control the technology—will therefore no longer be relevant.  Hinton posits AI models need to be imbued with a “maternal instinct” so it can treat the less-powerful humans with sympathy, rather than desire to control them. Invoking ideals of traditional femininity, he said the only example he can cite of a more intelligent being falling under the sway of a less intelligent one is a baby controlling a mother. “And so I think that’s a better model we could practice with superintelligent AI,” Hinton said. “They will be the mothers, and we will be the babies.” Introducing the 2025 Fortune Global 500, the definitive ranking of the biggest companies in the world. Explore this year’s list. Read More

The Federal Reserve has shuttered the Novel Activities Supervision Program it built in 2023 that was — in part — meant to focus on banks’ crypto activity. Updated Aug 15, 2025, 6:43 p.m. Published Aug 15, 2025, 5:03 p.m. The Federal Reserve continued its relaxation of crypto oversight on Friday with a move to shut down a two-year-old supervisory program intended to keep a special eye on banks’ crypto ties, instead folding that task back to its day-to-day oversight work. The central bank established its short-lived Novel Activities Supervision Program during the tenure of Vice Chairman Michael Barr, the board’s supervision chief appointed by then-President Joe Biden, and the agency is now sunsetting the effort and will “return to monitoring banks’ novel activities through the normal supervisory process,” according to a Fed statement on Friday. Since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, the Fed has tended to move in step with the other banking regulators who’ve pulled back on aggressive digital assets scrutiny. In April, the Federal Reserve withdrew its earlier crypto guidance that directed bankers to get approvals from the government supervisors before engaging in new crypto activity. The other two U.S. federal banking regulators, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. made matching moves to toss out the previous guidance, leaving banks to make their own crypto decisions under existing risk-management expectations. The idea behind the novel-activity program was that the Fed needed to gather special expertise and put a closer focus on risks to the banking system that might emerge from innovative and untested technologies. The initiative followed closely in the aftermath of the 2023 crisis in which three U.S. lenders closely associated with technology and crypto clients — Silicon Valley Bank, Silvergate Bank and Signature Bank — failed about five months earlier. In the two years since establishing the program, though, the Fed has “strengthened its understanding of those activities, related risks, and bank risk management practices,” according to Friday’s statement, so the work will be directed back to the regular supervisory process. The crypto industry and U.S. banking regulators have been through a tumultuous few years in which digital assets firms and insiders have complained of an organized campaign from government entities to cut them off from bank services — a campaign the industry and its Republican lawmaker allies call Operation Chokepoint 2.0. But Trump has appointed crypto-friendly officials to redirect the banking agencies, and though the Fed is protective of its independence, it’s generally joined the OCC and FDIC in the trend of relaxing crypto constraints. Read More: Fed Joins OCC, FDIC in Withdrawing Crypto Warnings for U.S. Banks Jesse Hamilton Jesse Hamilton is CoinDesk’s deputy managing editor on the Global Policy and Regulation team, based in Washington, D.C. Before joining CoinDesk in 2022, he worked for more than a decade covering Wall Street regulation at Bloomberg News and Businessweek, writing about the early whisperings among federal agencies trying to decide what to do about crypto. He’s won several national honors in his reporting career, including from his time as a war correspondent in Iraq and as a police reporter for newspapers. Jesse is a graduate of Western Washington University, where he studied journalism and history. He has no crypto holdings. X icon More For You Czech Police Arrest Donor in Billion-Dollar Bitcoin Scandal: Report Authorities detain convicted trafficker Tomáš Jiřikovský in probe over bitcoin gifted to Ministry of Justice, with the case expanding to money laundering and drug charges. What to know: Police detained Jiřikovský and secured evidence linked to a controversial bitcoin donation. The investigation is now focused on money laundering and drug trafficking. The Czch government survived a no-confidence vote in June over the $45 million donation. Read full story Read More

Digital Asset Treasury Firms Plunge as Bitcoin Tumbles Below $117K, ETH Slides to $4.4K The crypto rally continues to quickly reverse course just two days after bitcoin surged to a new record and ether soared to a five-year high. Aug 15, 2025, 3:54 p.m. Digital asset treasury (DAT) firms, seen as high-beta plays on crypto prices, sold off sharply on Friday as the August crypto rally showed signs of exhaustion. Strategy (MSTR) fell another 3% on Friday, extending its decline to 20% since July’s high and 33% from the November 2024 all-time high. The MSTR/IBIT ratio dropped to 5.43, its lowest since March, signaling continued underperformance against BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and a return to levels last seen at the start of the year. Other bitcoin treasury stocks also declined, with Metaplanet (3350) down 9% and Nakamoto (NAKA) off 12% following the completion of its merger with KindlyMD to form a new bitcoin treasury entity. MSTR/IBIT (TradingView) Breaking from the trend, KULR Technology (KULR) gained over 5% after reporting second quarter revenue growth of 63% year-over-year, the highest in its history, driven by its bitcoin-first balance sheet strategy. Firms with ETH-heavy portfolios suffered steeper losses. Bitmine Immersion Technologies and SharpLink Gaming, the two most prominent Ethereum strategy firms, declined 7% and 14%, respectively, in the early hours of the session. Solana-focused companies weren’t spared either. Upexi (UPXI) plunged over 9%, while DeFi Development (DFDV) was 5% lower. BTC, ETH, SOL rally cools The move coincided with bitcoin sliding below $117,000, extending its reversal from Thursday’s short-lived spike to $124,000, a new all-time high. Ether (ETH) tumbled back after challenging its record high above $4,800, now barely holding the $4,400 level. DATs pursue a strategy to raise funds by selling equity and debt to accumulate cryptocurrencies, a playbook pioneered by Michael Saylor’s Strategy. They are seen as a high-beta play on crypto prices, rising more when the underlying asset rallies, but suffering bigger drawdowns when the market cools. Most crypto-related stocks also traded lower during the session. Bitcoin miner Riot Platform and digital asset conglomerate Galaxy (GLXY) were lower by roughly 8%. Coinbase (COIN) was modestly down 1.6%, while Circle (CRCL) gained 3.5% following the successful completion of a secondary share offering. Read more: Bitcoin Rally Stalls on U.S. Inflation, Policy Whiplash: Crypto Daybook Americas Krisztian Sandor Krisztian Sandor is a U.S. markets reporter focusing on stablecoins, tokenization, real-world assets. He graduated from New York University’s business and economic reporting program before joining CoinDesk. He holds BTC, SOL and ETH. X icon James Van Straten James Van Straten is a Senior Analyst at CoinDesk, specializing in Bitcoin and its interplay with the macroeconomic environment. Previously, James worked as a Research Analyst at Saidler & Co., a Swiss hedge fund, where he developed expertise in on-chain analytics. His work focuses on monitoring flows to analyze Bitcoin’s role within the broader financial system. In addition to his professional endeavors, James serves as an advisor to Coinsilium, a UK publicly traded company, where he provides guidance on their Bitcoin treasury strategy. He also holds investments in Bitcoin and Strategy (MSTR). X icon More For You Stellar Lumens Holds Firm as Network Growth Set Stage for Breakout XLM trades in a tight range with strong support at $0.42 as record wallet growth and rising total value locked fuel optimism for a push toward the $0.50 resistance — and potentially beyond. What to know: XLM traded between $0.42 and $0.43 over the past 24 hours, facing late-session profit-taking but maintaining strong institutional support at $0.42. Stellar reached 9.69 million active enterprise wallets and $150M in total value locked, with 5,000–6,000 new institutional addresses added daily. Traders eye the $0.47–$0.50 resistance zone, with technical models projecting potential gains toward $0.60–$0.77 if institutional buying accelerates. Read full story Read More

SKIP TO CONTENT Harvard Business Review LogoHarvard Business Review Logo Leadership and managing people|Is Your Leadership Too Reactive? Subscribe Latest Magazine Topics Podcasts Store Data & Visuals Case Selections HBR Executive Search hbr.org Subscribe Latest Podcasts The Magazine Store Webinars Newsletters All Topics The Big Idea Data & Visuals Case Selections HBR Executive My Library Account Settings Explore HBR Latest The Magazine Podcasts Store Webinars Newsletters Popular Topics Managing Yourself Leadership Strategy Managing Teams Gender Innovation Work-life Balance All Topics For Subscribers The Big Idea Data & Visuals Case Selections HBR Executive Subscribe My Account My Library Topic Feeds Orders Account Settings Email Preferences Harvard Business Review Logo Leadership and managing people by Adi Ignatius August 15, 2025 HBR Staff; Klaus Vedfelt/Anna Orlova/Getty Images; Unsplash Post Summary.    Leer en españolLer em português Post Welcome to the HBR Executive Agenda for August 14, 2025. Post Read more on Leadership and managing people or related topics Leadership, Leadership qualities, Leadership styles, Adaptive leadership and Management Partner Center Read More

Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez is the author of the Harvard Business Review Project Management Handbook (Harvard Business Review Press, 2021), five other books, and the HBR article “The Project Economy Has Arrived.” His research and global impact on modern management have been recognized by Thinkers50. A leading authority in teaching and advising executives the art and science of strategy implementation and modern project management, Antonio is the CEO of Projects & Company, a leading strategy consulting firm. Read More

Business and society by Mary Ellen Carter, Lisa LaViers, Jason Sandvik and Da Xu August 15, 2025 HBR Staff/Tima Miroshnichenko/Pexels Post Summary.    Leer en españolLer em português Post For years, managers have been advised to avoid pay transparency among rank-and-file employees, but our research using employee ratings of compensation satisfaction from more than 1,300 publicly traded firms shows that this may not always be the right choice. Post Read more on Business and society or related topics Transparency, Employee incentives, Executive compensation and Employee engagement Read More

Birkenstock (NYSE:BIRK) stock was plummeting on Thursday, dropping around 4% despite the release of a solid fiscal third quarter earnings report. The German shoemaker scored revenue of €635 million, a 12% year-over-year increase. This narrowly missed estimates of €636 million. But net profit jumped 73% to €129 million, while earnings were up 75% to €0.69 per share. On an adjusted basis, net profit grew 26% to €116 million while adjusted earnings were €0.62, up 27%. That beat estimates of €0.60 per share. Further, the gross profit margin jumped 100 basis points to 60.5%, while the adjusted EBITDA margin expanded by 140 basis points to 34.4%. Birkenstock was able to keep expenses and cost of sales in check and had lower finance costs – fueling the earnings beat. “Underlying demand remains strong and we are on track to meet our target of constant currency growth at the high end of the 15-17% range we provided at the beginning of the year,” Oliver Reichert, CEO of Birkenstock, said. “We saw significant margin improvement in the quarter driven by sales price adjustments net of inflation and better absorption. This puts us on track to meet our Adjusted EBITDA margin target for the year despite the currency headwinds.” Reichert added that the company is in a good position to deal with the impact of the 15% tariff agreement between the US and EU. It will deploy a combination of pricing adjustments, cost discipline, and inventory management to offset the tariff impacts. Birkenstock reaffirms guidance, but Looking at where the sales came from, Birkenstock saw a 15% increase in B2B sales to €390 million. This refers to sales to outside retailers and wholesalers. Its direct-to-consumer or DTC sales rose 9% to €244 million. DTC sales are those from Birkenstock’s website or at its retail stores. Geographically, the Asia-pacific region saw a 21% increase in sales to €61 million, while the EMEA region saw a 13% increase to €259 million. The Americas remains the largest market, as sales rose 10% to €312 million.   The company reaffirmed its guidance despite the tariff headwinds. It expects fiscal 2025 revenue growth to be at the high-end of its guidance range of 15% to 17% range. Further, it maintains its forecast for adjusted EBITDA margin to be in the range of 31.3 to 31.8%, despite the strong depreciation of the US Dollar. That would be lower than the adjusted EBITDA range in Q3 of 34.4%, so perhaps that sparked the selloff. Investors may have also been disappointed by lower-than-expected growth in the DTC business and within the Americas. The depreciation of the U.S. dollar may be adding to those growth concerns for the fiscal fourth quarter. Investors may also be wary of Birkenstock’s valuation, which is fairly high for a retail stock at over 30. Perhaps they don’t see enough growth to warrant that valuation. It’s probably wise for investors to be somewhat cautious right now, given the tariffs, inflation, and economic uncertainty. VALUEWALK LLC is not a registered or licensed investment advisor in any jurisdiction. Nothing on this website or related properties should be considered personalized investments advice. Any investments recommended here in should be made only after consulting with your personal investment advisor and only after performing your own research and due diligence, including reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the issuer of any security. VALUEWALK LLC, its managers, its employees, affiliates and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about the advice provided on this website or what is otherwise advertised above. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. The Company disclaims any liability in the event any information, commentary, analysis, opinions, advice and/or recommendations provided herein prove to be inaccurate, incomplete or unreliable, or result in any investment or other losses. Read More

A bullish cycle, launched from the April 9, 2025 low, continues to develop as a five-wave impulse. Starting from that low, wave ((1)) peaked at 1948.6, followed by a wave ((2)) pullback to 1794.3. The Index then rallied in wave ((3)), reaching 2296.5. Wave ((4)) formed a double-three structure, with wave (W) ending at 2224.2, wave (X) at 2245.7, and wave (Y) dropping to 2146.96, completing wave ((4)). The Index has since advanced in wave ((5)), which unfolds as a smaller-scale impulse. From the wave ((4)) low, wave 1 climbed to 2251.7, and wave 2 corrected to 2208.1, addressing the earlier typo of 22081. The Index then surged in wave 3, also an impulse. Within wave 3, wave ((i)) hit 2238.9, wave ((ii)) dipped to 2220.3, wave ((iii)) rose to 2338.1, and wave ((iv)) pulled back to 2284.2. As long as the 2146.9 pivot low remains intact, the Index should push higher. In the near term, the bullish structure favors continued upside. Traders must monitor the 2146.9 low, as a break below could indicate a reversal. For now, wave ((5))’s momentum suggests further gains, with the Index likely to test new highs soon. Staying above the pivot reinforces the bullish outlook for the immediate future. Russell (RTY) – 60 minute Elliott Wave technical chart: RTY  – Elliott Wave technical [Video] FURTHER DISCLOSURES AND DISCLAIMER CONCERNING RISK, RESPONSIBILITY AND LIABILITY Trading in the Foreign Exchange market is a challenging opportunity where above average returns are available for educated and experienced investors who are willing to take above average risk. However, before deciding to participate in Foreign Exchange (FX) trading, you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of xperience and risk appetite. Do not invest or trade capital you cannot afford to lose. EME PROCESSING AND CONSULTING, LLC, THEIR REPRESENTATIVES, AND ANYONE WORKING FOR OR WITHIN WWW.ELLIOTTWAVE- FORECAST.COM is not responsible for any loss from any form of distributed advice, signal, analysis, or content. Again, we fully DISCLOSE to the Subscriber base that the Service as a whole, the individual Parties, Representatives, or owners shall not be liable to any and all Subscribers for any losses or damages as a result of any action taken by the Subscriber from any trade idea or signal posted on the website(s) distributed through any form of social-media, email, the website, and/or any other electronic, written, verbal, or future form of communication . All analysis, trading signals, trading recommendations, all charts, communicated interpretations of the wave counts, and all content from any media form produced by www.Elliottwave-forecast.com and/or the Representatives are solely the opinions and best efforts of the respective author(s). In general Forex instruments are highly leveraged, and traders can lose some or all of their initial margin funds. All content provided by www.Elliottwave-forecast.com is expressed in good faith and is intended to help Subscribers succeed in the marketplace, but it is never guaranteed. There is no “holy grail” to trading or forecasting the market and we are wrong sometimes like everyone else. Please understand and accept the risk involved when making any trading and/or investment decision. UNDERSTAND that all the content we provide is protected through copyright of EME PROCESSING AND CONSULTING, LLC. It is illegal to disseminate in any form of communication any part or all of our proprietary information without specific authorization. UNDERSTAND that you also agree to not allow persons that are not PAID SUBSCRIBERS to view any of the content not released publicly. IF YOU ARE FOUND TO BE IN VIOLATION OF THESE RESTRICTIONS you or your firm (as the Subscriber) will be charged fully with no discount for one year subscription to our Premium Plus Plan at $1,799.88 for EACH person or firm who received any of our content illegally through the respected intermediary’s (Subscriber in violation of terms) channel(s) of communication. Read More

The Australian Dollar recovers ground despite disappointing economic data from China. China’s Retail Sales climbed 3.7% YoY in July, falling short of the 4.6% expected and 4.8% in June. The US Dollar edges lower after registering a nearly 0.5% gain in the previous session. The Australian Dollar (AUD) appreciates against the US Dollar (USD) on Friday despite disappointing key economic data from China, Australia’s major trading partner. The AUD/USD lost more than 0.5% in the previous session as the US Dollar gained ground following stronger US economic data. China’s Retail Sales rose 3.7% year-over-year in July, falling short of 4.6% expected and 4.8% in June. Meanwhile, Industrial Production increased 5.7% YoY, compared to the 5.9% forecast and 6.8% seen previously. The downside of the AUD/USD pair could be limited as the US Dollar struggles amid rising expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will cut rates in September. The US July Retail Sales data and the preliminary Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index will be eyed later in the day. Australian Dollar advances as US Dollar edges lower ahead of Retail Sales data The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the value of the US Dollar against six major currencies, is losing ground and trading around 98.10 at the time of writing. The US Producer Price Index (PPI) rose 3.3% YoY in July, versus the 2.4% increase prior. This reading came in stronger than the expectations of 2.5% by a wide margin. The annual core PPI climbed 3.7% in July, compared to 2.6% in June and the 2.9% expected. US Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending August 9 fell to 224K versus 227K prior (revised from 226K). This figure was below the market consensus of 228K. CME’s FedWatch tool indicates that Fed funds futures traders are now pricing in nearly a 92% chance of a 25 basis point (bps) interest rate cut at the September meeting. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview on Wednesday that short-term Fed interest rates should be 1.5-1.75% lower than the current benchmark rate at an effective 4.33%. Bessent added that there is a good chance the central bank could opt for a 50-basis-point rate cut in September. US President Donald Trump shared his “paper calculation” that Fed interest rates should be at or near 1%. Trump also noted interest rates should be three or four points lower. Interest rates are just a paper calculation, he added. Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin stated on Thursday that a lot of companies are still not able to resume a strong pace of hiring despite an improved business sentiment. A constant cycle of ever-changing tariffs suppressed the mood of many business operators in the first and second quarters, driving down the pace of hiring. St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem told CNBC that tariffs are feeding through to inflation, which is running close to 3%. Musalem also said that “If the Fed were to weigh the labor market side more and reduce rates aggressively, that could lead to higher inflation expectations and be counterproductive.” “If the Fed were to weigh the labor market side more and reduce rates, that could lead to higher inflation expectations and be counterproductive,” he added. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump is considering legal action against Fed Chair Jerome Powell over his handling of renovations at the central bank’s headquarters, raising concerns about the Fed’s independence, per Reuters. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that US and Chinese trade officials will meet again within the next two to three months to discuss the future of their economic ties. “The US would need to see sustained progress on curbing fentanyl flows from China, potentially over months or even a year, before considering tariff reductions,” Bessent said. Australia’s Employment Change arrived at 24.5K in July from 1K in June (revised from 2K), against the consensus forecast of 25K. Meanwhile, the Unemployment Rate fell to 4.2%, as expected, from 4.3% in June. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) delivered a 25 basis points (bps) interest rate cut on Tuesday, as widely expected, bringing the Official Cash Rate (OCR) to 3.6% from 3.85% at the August policy meeting. RBA Governor Michele Bullock stated that current forecasts suggest the cash rate may need to be reduced to ensure price stability. However, Bullock emphasized the Board’s meeting-by-meeting approach and refrained from making any commitments on rate moves should financial markets experience a bout of volatility. The RBA’s monetary policy statement noted that inflation has continued to moderate. The outlook remains uncertain. It reaffirmed that maintaining price stability and full employment remains the top priority. Australian Dollar rebounds toward confluence resistance zone near 0.6500 The AUD/USD pair is trading around 0.6490 on Friday. Technical analysis on the daily chart suggests a momentum shift from bullish to bearish bias as the pair has broken below the ascending channel pattern. The pair also moved below the nine-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), signaling that short-term momentum is weaker. Moreover, the 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) is positioned below the 50 level, suggesting that market bias is bearish. On the downside, as the short- and medium-term price momentum is dampened, the AUD/USD pair could navigate the region around the two-month low of 0.6419, recorded on August 1, followed by a three-month low at 0.6372, recorded on June 23. The AUD/USD pair may target the immediate barrier at the 50-day EMA of 0.6500, followed by the nine-day EMA at 0.6508. A rebound toward the ascending channel would suggest a bearish trap and a bullish recovery. AUD/USD: Daily Chart Australian Dollar PRICE Today The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the strongest against the US Dollar. USD EUR GBP JPY CAD AUD NZD CHF USD -0.22% -0.16% -0.54% -0.15% -0.25% -0.12% -0.16% EUR 0.22% 0.05% -0.22% 0.07% -0.05% 0.08% 0.06% GBP 0.16% -0.05% -0.28% 0.02% -0.10% 0.03% 0.01% JPY 0.54% 0.22% 0.28% 0.30% 0.20%