US shares fall as Wall Street prepares for FOMC decision

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 105 points, or 0.3%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite retreated 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively. So, Stocks fell Wednesday as investors await the Federal Reserve’s latest rate decision at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting.


The Fed is widely expected to announce a 0.75 percentage point rate increase, its fourth hike in a row of that caliber, as it battles high inflation. Investors are also looking for a signal that the central bank is prepared to slow the pace of its rate-hiking plan come December.

Comments from the Fed and Chair Jerome Powell will play a key role in deciphering where stocks go in the months ahead and whether markets kick off a fresh bull run.

Peak hawkishness may fuel more FOMO, but should not be confused with dovishness, as CBs continue to walk a fine line. Rate cuts have been a precondition for equities to start a new bull market in the past.

The central bank’s decision will come after the release of strong jobs data, with better-than-expected private payrolls data for October painting a resilient labor market. The JOLTS report Tuesday also conveyed a tight jobs market despite the Fed’s aggressive tightening.