“The speculator’s chief enemies are always boring from within. It is inseparable from human nature to hope and to fear. In speculation when the market goes against you hope that every day will be the last day – and you lose more than you should had you not listened to hope – the same ally that is so potent a success-bringer to empire builders and pioneers, big and little. And when the market goes your way you become fearful that the next day will take away your profit, and you get out – too soon. Fear keeps you from making as much money as you ought to. The successful trader has to fight these two deep-seated instincts . . . Instead of hoping he must fear; instead of fearing he must hope.” — Jesse Livermore

1. EU Recommends Halting Nonessential Travel From the U.S. Over Covid-19 — the European Union recommended halting nonessential travel from the U.S. because of the rise of Covid-19 cases, ending a summer-vacation reprieve for American tourists. Still, member states retain control over all the rules for tourist travel, such as whether to impose quarantines on unvaccinated travelers and which certificates to accept as proof of having received a vaccine. The EU also axed Israel, Lebanon, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro, leaving only 18 countries on its list of so-called safe countries. That includes China when and if Beijing permits EU citizens to visit China.
2. Bitcoin Breaks Back Above $50,000 in Crypto Rally — Bitcoin broached the $50,000 level once again as the wider cryptocurrency market continued its rally.
The largest cryptocurrency rose as high as $50,362, having briefly surpassed $50,000 on Aug. 23 as well — a level it hadn’t hit since mid-May. Ether, the second-largest crypto, rose as much as 3% to $3,843, continuing a strong run after its London upgrade early last month. Cryptocurrencies have surged this year amid increased institutional interest and acceleration of development in areas like decentralized finance, known as DeFi, and non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. In addition, Twitter Inc. may be laying the groundwork to allow for Bitcoin tips in its Tip Jar feature, according to a recent report from MacRumors. Meanwhile, El Salvador’s Bitcoin law takes effect Sept. 7.
3. Fed’s Williams Says 2021 Taper Start ‘Could Be Appropriate’ — Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said “It could be appropriate” for the U.S. central bank to begin tapering its bond-buying program before the year is out. The Fed cut its benchmark interest rate to nearly zero and aggressively bought bonds last year at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. It has said it will continue the purchases at the current pace of $120 billion per month until the economy has made “substantial further progress” toward its maximum employment and price stability goals, a marker many officials have said they believe will be achieved this year.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: