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Wall Street Pauses as Fed Meeting Looms: Futures Hold Steady

U.S. stock futures were little changed on Tuesday as investors awaited the start of the Federal Reserve’s final policy meeting of the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq futures all hovered near flat, reflecting a cautious mood across Wall Street. The Fed is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged, but traders are focused on Chair Jerome Powell’s comments and the central bank’s updated economic projections. Markets are looking for clues on when rate cuts might begin in 2024, with inflation cooling but still above the Fed’s long-term target. Recent gains in equities have been fueled by optimism that the Fed’s tightening cycle is over, yet uncertainty remains about how quickly monetary policy will shift toward easing. Until then, investors appear content to hold their positions, waiting for clearer signals from the Fed before making bold moves.

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Bank of Canada Holds Interest Rate Steady Amidst Economic Slowdown

 


The Bank of Canada has announced that it will maintain its benchmark interest rate at 5% as the economy shows signs of slowing down. This marks the fourth consecutive hold by the bank, and the decision was widely expected by economists. The central bank’s inflation target sits in the middle of a range, and the Consumer Price Index rose to 3.4% in December 2023. The bank has been signalling recently that it thinks it may be nearing the end of its hiking cycle, after raising its trendsetting rate 10 times since early 2022 to slow down runaway inflation.


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