World Readies for Warsh Address at Jackson Hole; Oil Flows Through Strait of Hormuz Improving; Silver Breaks Through Resistance, Heads Higher

With Fed Chair Kevin Warsh queued up for the Jackson Hole speech at 10:00 am ET today, some tidbits of information are worth consideration.

Perhaps most important are reports coming out of the Middle East (now known as West Asia) that oil transiting through theStrait of Hormuz has increased dramatically over the past few days. A Bloomberg article via Yahoo! Finance cites Goldman Sachs saying that oil is flowing through the Strait at 2/3rds of pre-war levels. Considering the source and the reporting outlets, the rosy assessment ought to be received with a dose of skepticism.

Whatever the case may be in the war-torn region, there appears to be improvement in the overall tone between the conflicted countries about oil supplies flowing through the region, a positive sign for President Trump and the Republican prospects for the upcoming midterms. WTI crude oil is quoted at just above $82/barrel in the futures market, though gas prices at the pump remain a drag on consumer spending. If oil, deisel, and gas prices experience some relief, the U.S. economy

On the earnings front, retailers Dollar General (DG), DollarTree (DLTR), Best Buy (BBY), Burlington (BURL), and Gap Inc. (GAP) all reported positive second quarter results over the past 24 hours. Gap shares are trading 18% higher in the pre-market. The company reported an EPS beat despite missing on the revenue side.

The second estimate for second quarter GDP came in at the same level as the initial estimate, with the U.S. economy growing at 1.5%. Durable goods orders increased by 1.1% in July, topping estimates.

Stock futures are hugging the flat line with Dow and S&P futures up marginally and NASDAQ futures down just 33 points a half hour before the opening bell.

Gold is hovering around $4,600, but silver broke through resistance overnight and has traded as high as $71.07 this morning on the spot market. Stocks, interest rates, and precious metals are likely to be affected by Warsh's speech, though the thrust of his pronouncements may be more noise rather than signal. The real signals are coming from Scott Bessent's Treasury Department, hell-bent on keeping long term interest rates (10s out to 30s) tamped down at least until the midterms. Also contributing are massive U.S. deficits, lower tax revenues, and an economy booming on the heels of the AI buildout.

Money Daily will return with a recap of the Warsh speech and market reaction later today.

At the Close, Thursday, August 27, 2026:
Dow: 53,569.44, +105.56 (+0.20%)
NASDAQ: 26,541.35, +411.15 (+1.57%)
S&P 500: 7,730.99, +55.29 (+0.72%)
NYSE Composite: 24,649.03, -93.05 (-0.38%)