Stock Markets Brace for Impact of Fed's Decision as Investors Worry About Rate Changes

By Thea Felicity

Sep 16, 2024 12:11 PM EDT

US-ECONOMY-FED-RATE
A television station broadcasts US Federal Reserve Chair Chair Jerome Powell speaking in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York on August 23, 2024. 
(Photo : ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

US stock market quietly kicked off on Monday as investors get cautious about the rate changes by the Federal Reserve.

Reuters shared that the decision on interest rates by the Fed will be held on September 17 and 18 and a rate cut highly expected; the Chairman Jerome Powell has been hinting at the cut since last year which in return buoyed the market near record highs. 

READ MORE: Markets Await Inflation Data to Guide Federal Reserve's Rate Cut Decision

Federal Reserve's Possible Interest Rate Cut

Barron's reported that the implementation of rate cut become 59%, which was initially 30% last week. For traders, a larger cut would mean US economy is reaching its weakening point at a quick pace. Analysts believe that a clear communication from the Fed is important since the proposed rate cut could mean one-time adjustment for interest rates or future reductions.

Either way, investors are carefully assessing Fed's signals to make sense of the trajectory of US monetary policy.

What made Fed's signal confusing for traders is the benchmark index of Nasdaq on Friday. Reuters noted that it was its largest gain within 11 months, which showed optimism for an upcoming strong US economy rather than rate cuts.

This Monday, Nasdaq only fell by 0.2%, while S$P 500 and Dow were up 0.03% and 0.21% respectively. Notable gains saw Intel climbing up to 2% after securing $3.5 billion federal grants for production of semiconductor, while Trump Media had a 3.7% increase after a second assassination attempt on Donald Trump, and a decline in crypto stocks. 

READ NEXT: European Shares Gain While Dollar Weaken as Fed Signals Rate Cuts Ahead

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