The US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting is taking place over two days – April 30 and May 1. Fed Chair Powell will announce whether to cut or raise interest rates or to maintain the status quo, on May 1 at 2 p.m. ET. Most market analysts predict the US Fed to keep the federal funds rate (FFR) in the current range of 5.25% to 5.50%.

US Fed Chair Jerome Powell will hold a press conference after the announcement. Investors worldwide will be closely monitoring what the US Federal Reserve says. Investors may be able to infer hints about the future course of monetary policy from Powell’s talk.

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Will Powell and his team be inclined to hold rates higher for longer or will some data points give an outside chance to the Fed to cut rates at least once in 2024, remains to be seen.

Although investors will be closely monitoring any shifts in the FOMC’s language in the wake of the batch of hotter-than-anticipated inflation statistics for March and the first quarter, the Fed is widely expected to maintain borrowing costs constant in the meantime. Markets are now pricing in just one 25 basis point rate cut this year, which is a considerable decrease from the three cuts that were observed just one month ago.

The economic calendar’s headline is set for Wednesday when Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve announce their latest rate decision. While it is largely assumed that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged, markets will be waiting for any forward guidance Powell may make.

The US Fed faces deflationary recession and stagflation risks due to re-acceleration in inflation rates and GDP drop in Q1. Despite the fact that investor confidence has been divided during the results season—particularly in tech stocks—any hawkish remarks made by the Fed might have a negative impact on the market.

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Tuesday’s US stock futures remained unchanged as investors got ready for more corporate earnings, the most recent Federal Reserve policy announcement, and important jobs data.

Wall Street began the week on a positive note. The Wall Street indices closed higher on Monday after the markets rallied the previous trading week. Monday’s normal trading saw gains of 0.38% for the Dow, 0.32% for the S&P 500, and 0.35% for the Nasdaq Composite.

Following Chinese authorities’ approval for the business to implement its cutting-edge driver-assistance technology system, Tesla saw a 15.3% increase in stock price. Ahead of their earnings announcements, Apple and Amazon also saw increases of 2.5% and 0.8%, respectively.

Now, with Wednesday’s latest rate decision scheduled, all eyes will be on Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve.