Fed Chairman Powell.
Susan Walsh is in the pool.
The Fed decided to speed up the reduction of its monthly bond purchases.
Thedot plot shows that the committee expects three interest rate hikes in 2022.
Powell warned during his press conference that a resurgence of COVID-19 could slow down rate hikes.
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The Federal Reserve decided to speed up the reduction of its monthly bond buying program, causing the US stock market to surge.
The central bank is doubling the pace of purchases. January bond buys will total $60 billion, down from a peak of $120 billion and on track to wind down completely by March 2022.
The Fed's "dot plot" revealed three potential interest rate hikes in the next two years, which was more than the investor consensus of one rate hike next year. The move comes as policymakers try to tame rising inflation.
Some investors expected the Fed meeting to be more aggressive, but it wasn't. Chairman Powell said that the Fed's policies are flexible and can change. The need for a rate hike could be slowed down by a resurgence of COVID-19.
Powell acknowledged the possibility that a rate hike could come ahead of that milestone, though he maintained that the Fed is still waiting to see full employment before it begins to raise interest rates.
The US indexes stood at 4:00 pm. The close is on Wednesday.
The dot plot could be impacted by the complexion of the Federal Open Market Committee next year. Projections could change in three months because we don't know what the Committee will look like with three open seats.
The Fed's decision on Wednesday could be playing into the idea that the stock market could soar 45% over the next year into bubble territory as the Fed remains behind the curve. The public was reassured by Powell that the Fed is not behind the curve.
US retail sales fell in November after a strong October. The sales rose in November, but not as much as expected. Concerns about supply chain backlogs and shipping delays may have contributed to the weaker-than- expected data point.
There was a glitch in the websites that listed insane increases for cryptocurrencies. The incorrect price of the digital currency was displayed on two websites.
The new trading app called Iconik is trying to give retail investors a louder voice when it comes to shareholder voting proposals. The app pools together retail shares in companies to vote on company issues.
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose as much as 1.12%. The international benchmark for crude oil, called Brent, jumped as much as 1.03%.
The price of gold rose to $1,779.20 per ounce. The 10-year US treasury rate was not changed.
Business Insider has an original article.
