FOMC Meeting HIGHLIGHTS: Fed hikes key lending rate by 25 bps, Powell says inflation remains well beyond goal
FOMC Meeting HIGHLIGHTS: The Fed hiked the key US interest rate by a widely-expected 25 basis points (bps) on March 22, at the end of scheduled two-day deliberations of Chiar Jerome Powell-led Federal Open Market Committee - the US central banks all-powerful panel that decides benchmark lending rates in the worlds largest economy. Todays Fed decision comes in the middle of a turmoil in banking stocks thanks to the Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) crises that sent wild signals to global stock markets. Catch highlights of the FOMCs March meeting of 2023, the commentary of Jerome Powell and other policymakers, and realtime interprertation of their remarks and how the US share market Is taking it on Zeebiz.coms FOMC LIVE blog.
FOMC Meeting HIGHLIGHTS: The Fed hiked the key US interest rate by a widely-expected 25 basis points (bps) on March 22, at the end of scheduled two-day deliberations of Chiar Jerome Powell-led Federal Open Market Committee — the US central bank's all-powerful panel that decides benchmark lending rates in the world's largest economy. The latest Fed rate hike marks a second straight increase of the magnitude of 25 bps, as the central bank switched to slower raises the current cycle of rising interest rates.
The FOMC's unanimous decision to give the key rates a hike of 25 bps comes as major central banks remain committed to fighting red-hot inflation without damaging economic growth amid fears of at least a mild recession. ALSO READ: Jerome Powell promises to keep banking system safe as FOMC delivers second back-to-back 25-bps rate hike
Today's Fed decision comes in the middle of a turmoil in banking stocks thanks to the Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) crises that sent wild signals to global stock markets.
Catch HIGHLIGHTS of on the Fed's second scheduled meeting of 2023, all the action in the US stock market, the comments of Jerome Powell and other US policymakers — and what to make of them, realtime interpretation and how investors are taking it all here on Zee Business' FOMC blog-
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Thank you! That's all today on Zeebiz.com's blog on FOMC's second review of 2023
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Dow Update | Dow Jones plunges 530 pts, S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite follow suit as Fed Chair Jerome Powell remains committed to fight red-hot inflation
The three main US stock market indices — the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — saw bigger moves around the flatline following the Fed's announcement of a widely-expected 25-basis-point rate hike and ended sharply lower. The central bank also suggested it was on the verge of pausing future increases in view of recent turmoil in the financial sector.
Here's a look at how the three Wall Street gauges finished the day:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: down 530.5 points — or 1.6 per cent — at 32,030.1
S&P 500: down 65.9 points — or 1.7 per cent — at 3,937
Nasdaq Composite: down 190.2 points — or 1.6 per cent — at 11,670
Thank you! That's all today on Zeebiz.com's blog on FOMC's second review of 2023
For all other news related to business, politics, tech, sports and auto, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
Dow Update | Dow Jones plunges 530 pts, S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite follow suit as Fed Chair Jerome Powell remains committed to fight red-hot inflation
The three main US stock market indices — the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — saw bigger moves around the flatline following the Fed's announcement of a widely-expected 25-basis-point rate hike and ended sharply lower. The central bank also suggested it was on the verge of pausing future increases in view of recent turmoil in the financial sector.
Here's a look at how the three Wall Street gauges finished the day:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: down 530.5 points — or 1.6 per cent — at 32,030.1
S&P 500: down 65.9 points — or 1.7 per cent — at 3,937
Nasdaq Composite: down 190.2 points — or 1.6 per cent — at 11,670
Dow LIVE | Fed policy, Jerome Powell comments fail to excite Wall Street; Dow down 195 pts
Here's where the three main US stock market indices — the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the megacap tech stocks-heavy Nasdaq Composite — stand at this hour, a good 75 minutes into the release of the FOMC's second policy statement of the year:
- Dow Jones: down 195.4 points — or 0.6 per cent — at 32,365.2
- S&P 500: down 19.7 points — or 0.5 per cent — at 3,983.2
- Nasdaq Composite: down 35.5 points — or 0.3 per cent — at 11,824.6
MSCI's All-Country World Index (ACWI), however, is up 2.8 points or 0.4 per cent at 630.4.
FOMC Meeting LIVE | Fed says US banking system sound, resilient
Here are some key highlights of the Fed's policy statement:
- Recent indicators point to modest growth in spending, production
- Job gains have picked up in recent months
- Unemployment rate remains low
- Inflation remains elevated
- FOMC remains highly attentive to inflation risks, seeks to achieve maximum employment, inflation at two percent over longer run
- It will closely monitor incoming information to assess implications for monetary policy
- FOMC strongly committed to bringing inflation back to target level
Jerome Powell promises to keep banking system safe as FOMC delivers second back-to-back 25-bps rate hike
FOMC LIVE | Fed funds rate stands at 4.75-5% after latest hike
Jerome Powell LIVE | Fed Chair says central bank remains committed to ensuring price stability
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hints at "some additional hikes" ahead.
Jerome Powell LIVE | Fed Chair reiterates commitment to bring inflation back to 2% target
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said higher interest rates and slower economic growth are weighing on businesses.
FOMC LIVE | Fed hikes key rates by 25 bps, hints at more increases
Here are a few key points in today's statement — the Fed's second policy statement of 2023:
- Inflation remains elevated
- FOMC member vote unanimous
- Some additional policy tightening "may be appropriate"
FED RATE HIKE LIVE | FOMC MEMBERS VOTE UNANIMOUSLY ON RATE DECISION
FOMC LIVE | FED HIKES RATE BY 25 BPS AS WIDELY EXPECTED
FOMC LIVE | Countdown begins! Big Fed rate decision any minute now
Follow this space to catch the latest on what Jerome Powell and other Fed policymakers think of inflation and resilience in the world's largest economy now. Will they hike rates or keep them on hold? Find out soon.
FOMC LIVE | Ajay Bagga says a hawkish tone from Fed Chair Jerome Powell today can cause nervousness across global equities
Market expert Ajay Bagga tells Zee Business that a hawkish take by Fed Chair Jerome Powell could cause investors turn nervous globally and impact the markets.
Can the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) be compared with that of Lehman Brothers? What about Credit Suisse?
A study has found that 186 US banks are at the risk of meeting a similar fate, maily due to:
- rising interest rates
- high proportion of uninsured deposits
Lehman Brothers went bankrupt on September 15, 2008. At the time of its collapse, it was the fourth-largest investment bank in the US with nearly 25,000 employees across the globe. It had $639 billion in assets and $613 billion in liabilities. It was the Lehman Brothers collapse that led to the Great Financial Recession of 2008.
Economists believe that the magnitude of the SVB crisis has been far less compared with that of Lehman Brothers.
Fed rate cuts not in the offing, can now say for first time that disinflationary process has begun: Jerome Powell after last FOMC meeting
Fed Chair Jerome Powell, due to speak after the release of the FOMC's policy resolution statement at 11:30 India time tonight, gave a rather dovish signal to the markets in the last scheduled review. Referring to the "disinflationary" process that appeared to be underway, Powell insisted that rate cuts are not in the offing.
"We can now say for the first time that the disinflationary process has started," Powell told reporters, triggering a boost in investor bets for coming rate cuts.
FOMC Meeting LIVE | What does Jerome Powell have in store for US economy, global financial markets
Follow this space and find out in about 30 minutes!
Big FOMC rate decision due in 40-odd minutes; US 10-year bond yield down by four bps at 3.56%
US government bond yields fell sharply last week, with the biggest drops in decades in some tenures, as investors bet the Fed will likely curb its rate hike trajectory to avoid exacerbating financial system stress, following the sudden failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) though the takeover of the troubled Credit Suisse offered a sigh of relief to investors.Dow Jones LIVE | Wall Street indices struggle in tight range below flatline less than 90 minutes ahead of big Fed rate decision; whether it's a Fed rate hike or Fed pause today will be out in the open soon
Here's how the three main gauges are faring at this hour:
- Dow Jones: down 75.7 points — or 0.2 per cent — at 32,484.9
- S&P 500: down 6.7 points — or 0.2 per cent — at 3,996.2
- Nasdaq Composite: down 7.4 points — or 0.1 per cent — at 11,852.7
Global Market Update | Asian shares rallied earlier on Wednesday with investors keeping fingers crossed on looming interest rate decisions
Equity benchmarks across Asia — including Nifty 50 and Sensex in India — stayed in the green as investors awaited key rate decisions from major central banks including the Fed. Optimism on an end to threats to the world's banking system following the Credit Suisse and SVB crises boosted banking shares.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan rose 6.7 points — or 1.3 per cent — to 510.2.
Fed Meeting Impact: Here's how some of the key indices in the region fared ahead of the big FOMC rate decision:
- Sensex: up 139.9 points or 0.2 per cent at 58,214.6
- Nifty 50: up 44.4 points or 0.3 per cent at 17,151.9
- Japan's Nikkei 225: up 520.9 points or 1.9 per cent at 27,466.6
- China's Shanghai Composite: up 10.1 points or 0.3 per cent at 3,265.8
- Hong Kong's Hang Seng: up 332.7 points or 1.7 per cent at 19,591.4
- South Korea's KOSPI: up 28.6 points or 1.2 per cent at 2,417
- Singapore's Straits Times: up 47.1 points or 1.5 per cent at 3,221
Global Market LIVE | European, Asian shares may have been in the green for much of the day, but Wall Street isn't much impressed (yet)
MSCI's All Country World Index (ACWI) — aimed at capturing movement across major stock markets around the globe — is up 1.3 point, or 0.2 per cent, at 629.
Global market update | European market recovers initial losses amid cautious trade ahead of FOMC statement; all eyes on Jerome Powell's speech
European markets began the day struggling in a tight range around the flatline but soon recovered to trade firmly in the green, with the pan-continental Stoxx index rising as much as 2.4 points — or half a per cent — to as high as in the second half of the session.
Europe Market LIVE
The Europe-wide index is up 0.9 point or 0.2 per cent at 447.4 at this hour. Banking stocks lead the gains across Europe, as investors digest recent blows to the sector and fears of contagion fuelled by the takeover of the troubled Credit Suisse and the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
Here's what the three major indices of the region look like:
- UK's FTSE 100: up 31.2 pts or 0.2 per cent at 7,567.4
- France's CAC: up 14.6 pts or 0.2 per cent at 7,127.5
- Germany's DAX: up 20.9 pts or 0.1 per cent at 15,216.3
FOMC LIVE | Did you know that Fed policymakers have only dissented on rate decisions on few occassions in COVID era?
Yes, it's true. Since March 2020, when the pandemic first sent the world taking refuge in full-fledged lockdowns to protect the public, members of the Fed's all-powerful rate-deciding panel — the FOMC — have dissented on only three occassions in:
- September 2020
- March 2022
- June 2022
FOMC Meeting LIVE | A rate hike of 25 bps today will be a third such hike since March 2022
All other upward revisions during this period have been to the tune of 50-75 basis points each — including the biggest Fed rate hike since 1994 in June 2022.
FOMC LIVE | A glance at Fed rate hikes in the current cycle of monetary policy tightening (or the current cycle of rising interest rates!)
The Fed has in total raised the key US lending rates by 450 basis points — or 4.5 percentage points — to a range of 4.5 per cent to 4.75 per cent in eight tranches since March 2022.
Date Funds rate range (the key US interest rates) Magnitude of revision (bps) February 1, 2023 4.5–4.75% 25 December 14, 2022 4.25–4.5% 50 November 2, 2022 3.75–4% 75 September 21, 2022 3–3.25% 75 July 27, 2022 2.25–2.5% 75 June 15, 2022 1.50–1.75% 75 May 4, 2022 0.75–1% 50 March 16, 2022 0.25–0.5% 25 FOMC LIVE | Did you know that all members of Fed's interest rate-decising panel have voted unanimously over the last five back-to-back reviews?
Yes, it is true. All members of the committee have voted in favour of the hikes since June last year, right after the Fed announced its biggest upward revision in the key US interest rate since 1994. In the June 15 review, one member of the FOMC, Esther George, was the only member of the panel to vote otherwise.
Dow LIVE | US stock market benchmarks inch lower as caution sets in ahead of Fed rate decision
The three main Wall Street indices — the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — suffer minor losses after a muted start to the session.
- Dow Jones: down 0.1 per cent
- S&P 500: down 0.1
- Nasdaq Composite: down 0.2 per cent
All eyes are now on the FOMC — the Federal Reserve's rate-setting panel, whose second review of the year might spell a widely-expected 25-basis-point rate hike.
Most traders have switched to expectation of a 25-bps move today given the concerns about resilience of the banking sector. Some blame aggressive rate hikes by the US central bank as one of the reasons befing the crisis.FOMC LIVE Update | Fed Chair Jerome Powell, other policymakers' decision on whether to hike or hold key US interest rate due in about three hours
The Fed will release a statement at 11:30 pm India time, after the conclusion of a two-day meeting of Chair Jerome Powell-led Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) — the all-powerful panel that decides the interest rates in the world's largest economy.
Fed policy timing
The statement, due late on Wednesday in India (2 pm in the US), will also contain the US central bank's economic projections.
Fed March 2023 Meeting LIVE | Easing inflation backs confidence Fed won't go for a 50 bps rate hike, says Master Capital Services' Arvinder Singh Nanda
Arvinder Singh Nanda, Senior Vice President at Master Capital Services, believes the US central bank might even consider taking a break in this meeting. "The market is abuzz with a hawkish stance from the US Fed officials in this meeting and expecting a maximum hike of 25 bps," he says.
"If the US Fed raises interest rates, the cost of capital increases, leading to lower stock valuations. Following the US Fed’s announcement of a likely increase in interest rates, FIIs have started pulling out of Indian and other emerging equity markets. We are a major importer of crude oil, and continuous selling by FIIs results in rupee depreciation and a higher import bill. This, in turn, has a negative impact on our current account balance," he adds.
Could Federal Reserve rate action jolt gold price today?
Gold prices have climbed to record levels over the past few weeks, with the domestic futures crossing the Rs 60,000 per 10 grams level for the first time ever. The rally in gold — with the international benchmark rate up almost seven per cent so far in 2023 — has been backed by turmoil in banking shares thanks to fresh problems at Credit Suisse, the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and weakness in the rupee against the US dollar.
Read more on what experts make of gold price ahead of the big FOMC event
Fed March 2023 Meeting | FOMC to go with 25 bps hike with enough dispersion in dot plot, says Emkay Global's Madhavi Arora
Madhavi Arora, Lead Economist at Emkay Global Financial Services, reiterates her view that the Fed may go ahead with a hike of 25 basis points in the funds range "with enough dispersion in the dot plot".
"(Fed Chair Jerome) Powell will likely distinguish between the inflation fight and supporting financial stability via regulatory tools, absent any systemic event," she tells Zeebiz.com.
Fed March 2023 meeting: When will the outcome of second FOMC deliberations of 2023 be out?
The Fed's policy statement — containing the verdict on the key US interest rates as well as the thoughts of Chair Jerome Powell and other US policymakers — is due for release at 11:30 pm India time.
FOMC LIVE | Today's Fed rate decision is the second of 2023; what Street expects
In its February 1 statement, the Fed Chair Jerome Powell-led Federal Open Market Committee — the US central bank's rate-deciding panel — switched to a slower hike in the benchmark interest rates, as it announced a hike of 25 basis points. That marked the the first hike of such magnitude since March 2022, as all other increases during the post-pandemic era were to the tune of 50-75 bps.
The Fed's move to slow down with the upwards revision sent waves of optimism across global markets, including Dalal Street.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell's post-policy comments were largely perceived to be rather dovish compared with the recent past.
A quick glance at key takeaways from the first FOMC meeting of 2023
US Stock Market News | Dow Jones, S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite futures turn flat, suggest a muted start on Wall Street on Thursday amid caution among investors ahead of Fed rate decision
Here's what the futures contracts of the three main US share market indices — the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — suggest in early Asian trade at this hour:
- Dow Jones: down 23 points or 0.1 per cent at 32,751
- S&P 500: down down one point at 4,034.8
- Nasdaq Composite: up 4.8 points at 12,872
Dow LIVE | Blue-chip index soars Dow Jones soars 316 points, S&P 500 follows suit led by banks ahead of Fed rate decision; US tech stocks-heavy Nasdaq surges 185 pts — over to FOMC
The FOMC's second scheduled meeting of the year takes centrestage in the US stock market, sending the three main indices — the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — soaring 1-1.6 per cent.
Easing concerns about a liquidity crunch in banking also aided the rise on Wall Street, after days of wild swings in the sector owing to fresh problems followed by the takeover of Credit Suisse, and the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
The focus now shifts to the Fed, which concludes its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday. The outcome of the FOMC meeting is due at 11:30 pm India time Wednesday, wherein the US central bank is widely expected to announce a 25 basis-point hike in the key lending rate in its battle to tame red-hot inflation without hurting economic growth.
Here's how the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq finished the March 21 session:
- Dow Jones: up 316 points — or one per cent — at 32,560.6
- S&P 500: up 51.3 points — or 1.3 per cent — at 4,002.87
- Nasdaq Composite: up 184.6 points — or 1.6 per cent — at 11,860.1
FOMC decision outcome to be announced tomorrow midnight – Will Fed continue hawkish stance?
Investors across the globe are keenly awaiting the outcome of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting that is underway on March 21 and 22. Fed chief Jerome Powell will announce the rate hike decision on Wednesday at 2 pm Eastern Time i.e. around midnight Wednesday in India. Another key indicator for markets and investors will be Powell’s news conference after the rate hike decision as it indicates the mood among policymakers. This time in particular the post-commentary conference will give an idea of how the Fed is going to tackle the ongoing banking crisis amidst its tightening measures to tame inflation.
Bajaj Finserv's Sanjiv Bajaj calls Indian banking strong, asks banks to keep focusing on risk management
Sanjiv Bajaj, chairman and managing director of Bajaj Finserv Ltd, and president of the Confederation of Indian Industry reinforces his belief that the Indian banking system is quite stable but advises the banks to work on risk management to avoid a fiasco similar to those at Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). In an exclusive interview with Zee Business, Bajaj also praised the Reserve Bank of India, saying it is a strong watchdog regulator and has been keeping a close watch on the banking system for a long time.
US FOMC MEET: WILL FED HIKE INTEREST RATE BY 25 bps or 50 bps?
US FOMC Meet: One question that is in every investor's mind? Will the Federal Reserve hike the rates or pause in the March meeting? The Federal Reserve meeting this week will decide its next step on interest rates just as its yearlong fight against inflation is colliding with a crunch in the financial sector.
Dow LIVE | US blue-chip index Dow Jones jumps almost 350 pts as FOMC begins two-day deliberations to decide on interest rate
The three main Wall Street indices — the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the US mega-cap tech stocks-heavy Nasdaq Composite — jump as much as 349.1 points or − 1.1 per cent to 32,593.7 in morning deals today. All eyes are now on the outcome of the meeting due at 11:30 pm India time Wednesday.
Here’s how the other two gauges fare 90-odd minutes into the opening bell in the US share market:
- S&P 500: up as much as 46.9 pts or 1.2 per cent at 3,998.5
- Nasdaq Composite: up as much as 49.4 pts or 0.4 per cent at 11,724.9 3,998.5
Editor's Take: What Happens When Fed Increases Interest Rates? Decodes Anil Singhvi
Why should interest rates increase in US Fed policy? What will happen in US Fed Policy? Why is it necessary to increase the rates this time? Know from Anil Singhvi.
Welcome readers to ZeeBiz.com's live coverage of the FOMC meeting as US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell and other policymakers start their two-day deliberations on key policy rates amid an ongoing banking crisis that unfolded first with the failure of the Silicon Valley Bank on March 10 and subsequently engulfed others. Our team of journalists will keep you abreast with all the latest info, stock market reaction, expert comments and more. Stay tuned and happy reading.
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