Federal Reserve chair is under bombardment from Donald Trump and battling an insurgency within the central bank

The U.S. dollar was little changed on Wednesday as traders awaited a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the annual Jackson Hole central bankers' symposium later this week for clues on the path of monetary policy.

Jerome Powell has the ideal platform Friday to deliver a clear signal the Federal Reserve is about to resume cutting interest rates. But the economy isn’t giving him an equally clear signal that now is the time.

The Nasdaq fell as megacaps lost, after having rallied for much of the year. Nvidia fell 3.5%, the biggest drop in nearly four months.

By Howard Schneider WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Fed Chair Jerome Powell used the central bank's annual Wyoming research conference to promise inflation-fighting rigor when it was needed in 2022, then last year he came to the defense of the job market with promises of lower interest rates when the unemployment rate seemed on a steady rise.

Investors are tracking talks aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war and awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole at the end of the week.

The U.S. dollar saw modest gains Wednesday as investors looked ahead to the release of the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting minutes and the Jackson Hole symposium for guidance on the central bank’s next steps.

Gold prices edged lower on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar firmed, while investors hunkered down for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole later this week.