US markets end lower ahead of Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision

31 Jan 2023 Evaluate

The US markets ended lower on Monday, whit Nasdaq settling around two percent cut, ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision. The Fed's two-day meeting gets underway on Tuesday. The central bank is widely expected to slow the pace of interest rate hikes to 25 basis points. Traders will pay close attention to the accompanying statement for clues about the outlook for further rate hikes. Recent upbeat economic data has generated some optimism the Fed could engineer a soft landing but has also led to concerns the central bank will need to keep rates at elevated levels for longer than anticipated. The Bank of England and the European Central Bank are also scheduled to announce their rate decisions this week. It is expected that both BoE and ECB will hike interest rates by 50 basis points.

Investors also focused on earnings reports, amid concerns the economy may be facing a recession. With more than 140 companies having reported so far, S&P 500 earnings are expected to have fallen 3% in the fourth quarter compared with the prior-year period, according to private report. Apple, Amazon and Alphabet lost 2 percent, 1.6 percent, and 2.5 percent, respectively. Meta Platforms drifted down about 3 percent. Microsoft, Chevron, 3M, Walt Disney, United Health and Caterpillar also ended notably lower.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 260.99 points or 0.77 percent to 33,717.09, Nasdaq dropped 227.9 points or 1.96 percent to 11,393.81 and S&P 500 was down by 52.79 points or 1.3 percent to 4,017.77.

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