Jay Powell pushed back against hopes for a March interest-rate cut saying it was “not the most likely” scenario. Selloff ensued.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJI dropped sharply lower on Wednesday, following the Federal Reserve’s first meeting of 2024. Judging by the 300-point loss for the blue-chip index, investors didn’t get their expectations met as Powell delivered the central bank’s statement.
No rate cuts are planned for the Fed’s next meeting coming in March. That’s the key takeaway and the catalyst for the broad-based selloff yesterday. “I don’t think it’s likely that we’ll reach a level of confidence by the time of the March meeting,” Powell told journalists in a press conference after leaving rates unchanged.
The Dow Jones was joined in the red by the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite, which lost 1.6% and 2.2%, respectively. On the bright side, stocks were off to a good start of 2024. All three Wall Street benchmarks are up in January, each boasting gains of more than 1%.