In a testimony prepared for the Senate Banking Committee, Chairman Jerome Powell conceded that recent data suggested a mixed message as to the current state of the economy in the United States.

There were mixed results in the precious metals today, with extreme dollar weakness providing a tailwind. While gold traded lower on the day, the industrial precious metals including platinum, palladium and silver all closed with gains.

U.S. equities and their action this week can be summed up in two words; extreme volatility. Yesterday market participants and traders hammered U.S.