The US markets ended lower on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve made its highly anticipated monetary policy announcement, and while the statement was largely unchanged from the previous meeting, the central bank's latest projections now point to an increase in interest rates in 2023. The latest projections from Fed officials suggest interest rates will be increased to 0.6 percent in 2023 compared to previous projections indicating rates would remain at near-zero levels. Seven officials expect a rate hike as soon as 2022. The forecast for higher rates in 2023 comes as the median estimate for GDP growth in the year was raised to 2.4 percent from the 2.2 percent forecast in March. Core consumer price inflation is still expected to increase by 2.1 percent in 2023.
The new estimates also point to 7.0 percent GDP growth in 2021 versus the previously estimated 6.5 percent, with core consumer price inflation expected to reach 3.0 percent compared to the previously forecast 2.2 percent. The Fed reiterated that indicators of economic activity and employment have strengthened, citing progress on Covid-19 vaccinations and strong policy support. The statement also acknowledged rising inflation but once again largely attributed the increase to transitory factors. The central bank also said it plans to continue its bond purchases at a rate of at least $120 billion per month until substantial further progress has been made toward its goals of maximum employment and price stability.
Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 265.66 points or 0.77 percent to 34,033.67, Nasdaq dropped 33.17 points or 0.24 percent to 14,039.68 and S&P 500 was down by 22.89 points or 0.54 percent to 4,223.7.
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