US stocks were little changed on Wednesday as investors braced for the Federal Reserve’s long-awaited policy decision, with the market still divided on the size of the expected rate cut.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose about 0.1%. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was just above the flat line, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) slipped 0.1%.
Stocks are ticking over as the market waits to find out how aggressive the Fed will be when it makes its first US interest rate cut since 2020 at the end of its meeting later Wednesday.
The significant policy shift is widely expected, given growing signs that the central bank has managed to cool inflation without severe harm to the economy. But investors are still guessing at whether hopes for a 0.5% cut will be fulfilled or the historic pattern of 0.25% moves will repeat itself.
In recent days, traders have stepped up bets on a bigger cut even after Fed officials earlier in September flagged they were more likely to trim the benchmark rate by 25 basis points. As of Wednesday morning, fed funds futures were pricing in a better than 60% chance the Fed goes large, up from just 15% odds a week ago.
Wall Street sees stock, bond, and currency markets as vulnerable to swings in the immediate aftermath of the Fed’s decision, seen as the least predictable in years.
Intense focus is also on the Fed’s new interest rate projections, an indication of how many rate cuts officials expect to see in the rest of 2024 and in 2025. The so-called dot plot will come when the Fed releases its policy decision at 2 p.m. ET.
Meanwhile, investors absorbed developments in the tech sector. Microsoft (MSFT) and BlackRock (BLK) are teaming up on an effort to raise $30 billion to build out AI infrastructure, while Google parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) won its bid to overturn a $1.7 billion EU antitrust fine related to digital ads.
Wed, September 18, 2024 at 9:32 AM EDT
Stocks waver at the open
Stocks were little changed at the open on Wednesday as investors patiently await the Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy decision at 2 p.m. ET.
As debate swirls whether the Fed will cut interest rates by 25 or 50 basis points, the three major indexes appeared to be in wait-and-see mode.
Wed, September 18, 2024 at 8:57 AM EDT
Housing starts jumped in August amid declining mortgage rates
New residential construction increased in August as mortgage rates continued their decline.
Housing starts rose 9.6% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.356 million units, according to data from the Census Bureau released Wednesday. Single-family housing starts soared 15.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 992,000.
The data comes as homebuilders feel more confident about the housing market. Mortgage rates are at their lowest level in over a year. Rates have been on a downward trend recently, with investors expecting the Fed to announce an interest-rate cut at the conclusion of its policy meeting later Wednesday.
The data showed that building permits for single family homes rose to a pace of 967,000, a 2.8% increase from July’s revised figure of 941,000. Meanwhile, permits for multifamily came in at a rate of 451,000 in August.
Wed, September 18, 2024 at 8:52 AM EDT
Dimon says the rate cut debate is overrated
JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon told a conference on Tuesday that any interest rate move by the Fed would “not going to be earth-shattering,” arguing that “it’s a minor thing when the Fed’s raising rates and lowering rates because underneath that there’s a real economy.”
The comments follow Dimon telling CNBC last month that when it comes to the debate about how much the Fed cuts interest rates, “I don’t think it matters as much as other people think. You know, the rate effect itself isn’t that critical.”
Wed, September 18, 2024 at 8:45 AM EDT
‘The Fed cutting by 50 basis points is a real possibility’
From Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger:
“The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates for the first time in four years Wednesday and outline the path for future rate cuts.
Investors have been hoping for a larger half-percentage-point cut versus a quarter-point cut. Traders, in recent days, have increased their wager that the central bank will cut by a deeper 50 basis points. Wednesday morning, fed funds futures were pricing in a better than 60% chance the Fed cuts by 50 basis points, up from just 15% odds a week ago.
‘The Fed cutting by 50 basis points is a real possibility,’ said Wilmer Stith, a bond trader for Wilmington Trust, who just last week thought it was more likely the central bank could cut by 25 basis points. He’s on the fence, though, as to whether it actually happens.”
Shared by Golden State Mint on GoldenStateMint.com
