Friends

As expected, the Fed did not alter monetary policy today. During his press conference the Fed Chair basically said that they are stuck in a wait and see stance until more clarity on tariffs and other fiscal policy issues are known. Asked whether they are more concerned about inflation or a potentially weakening labor market the Fed Chair could not really answer the question. A weakening labor market might call for lowering the Fed Funds rate, but increasing inflation might actually call for higher rates. No action is really the only action the Fed could take at this point.

Stocks were all over the place but in the end moved higher. By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 284 points to finish the day at 41,113. The S&P 500 was up 24 points to close at 5,631. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 48 points to close at 17,738. Gold was down $41 to trade at $3,381 per ounce, while oil was down $1.07 to trade at $58.02 per barrel WTI.

Now with the Fed meeting behind us and corporate earnings season mostly over, market participants are likely to focus on headlines on tariffs. That is likely to keep things volatile for the moment. In the meantime, let’s see how the rest of this week play out.

Have a nice evening everyone.