In a day of relatively flat trading, U.S. stocks lacked significant movement on Wednesday as investors eagerly awaited the Federal Reserve’s latest policy decision. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a minor decline of 19 points, equivalent to about 0.05%. At the same time, the S&P 500 saw marginal gains, while the Nasdaq Composite managed to advance by 0.2%.
One of the notable occurrences during the trading session was the decline of Pfizer shares by over 8%, reaching a ten-year low. This drop came in response to the company’s release of profit and revenue forecasts that fell below Wall Street’s expectations. Another notable stock movement was Tesla, which experienced a 1.4% decline after recalling two million vehicles due to concerns with its Autopilot system, as raised by regulators.
While market participants are eagerly awaiting the Fed’s decision on interest rates, it is widely anticipated that the benchmark overnight borrowing rate will remain unchanged within the range of 5.25% to 5.5%. Investors will closely analyze the commentary of Fed Chair Jerome Powell for any hints regarding the potential timing of future rate cuts. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, markets have already begun pricing in the possibility of rate cuts starting in the spring of next year.
However, it remains to be seen if Powell will address or push back against such expectations, particularly as Treasury yields are already showing signs of decline. Over the past month, the 10-year Treasury yield has dropped to 4.2% after reaching a peak of 5% back in October.
Source (CNBC)
