The Federal Reserve slashed interest rates this morning responding to fears of a market meltdown by a bold three-fourths of a percentage point. Today all eyes are watching Wall Street’s response. The Fed signaled further rate cuts were likely. Market opens and drops 465 points only to make up much of the losses by noon. Many are wondering what’s ahead?
The market’s “January from Hell” seemed ready to get a whole lot worse on Tuesday, as global markets tumbled and U.S. index futures pointed to super-sized losses at the Wall Street open.
Then the Fed stepped in.
The Federal Reserve announced an emergency rate cut of 75 basis points Tuesday morning at around 8:20 am ET, taking the Fed funds target rate down to 3.5%. The central bank cited “a weakening of the economic outlook and increasing downside risks to growth.” The Fed also approved a 75-basis-point decrease in the discount rate to 4%.
As expected, major U.S. stock indexes plummeted after the opening bell, with the Dow Jones indust…
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