Market Prepares for Wednesday’s Fed Decision

Sep 16, 2024 | Market Commentary

Friends

 

Will it be a quarter of a point? Will it be a half of a point? Market participants are anxiously awaiting the Fed’s decision on interest rates which we will get on Wednesday afternoon. In the meantime, stocks were mixed today with value/interest rate driven stocks higher while many of the tech darlings were lower for the trading session.

 

By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 228 points to finish the day at 41,622. The S&P 500 was up 7 points to close at 5,633. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 91 points to close at 17,592. Gold was down $1 to trade at $2,609 per ounce, while oil was up $1.79 to trade at $70.44 per barrel WTI.

 

As mentioned, we will get the Fed decision on interest rates on Wednesday. We know that the Fed is hoping to begin easing monetary policy by lowering the Fed Funds rate, but what we don’t know is at what pace those rate cuts will come. I expect the Fed would like to take a cautious approach, but future economic data will dictate whether that will be the case. Buckle up, it should be an interesting week for the markets.

 

Have a nice evening everyone.

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