The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Feb. 13, edition that the S&P 500 ended down on Wednesday after a hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation reading added to worries that the Federal Reserve would not cut interest rates any time soon, while CVS Health and Gilead Sciences rallied after upbeat quarterly reports. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that U.S. consumer prices increased in January by the most in nearly a year and a half, reinforcing the Federal Reserve's message that it was in no rush to resume cutting rates. The surge in prices offered a cautionary note to President Donald Trump's push for tariffs on imported goods, which economists have panned as inflationary.
Interest rate futures now suggest traders see about a 70-per-cent chance the Fed will reduce rates by another 25 basis points by the end of 2025, down from about an 80-per-cent chance on Tuesday, according to CME Fedwatch. Longbow Asset Management chief executive officer Jake Dollarhide says: "The market is digesting that the Fed may not cut at all. That's why the stock market is down." Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday reiterated to the Senate Banking Committee that the Fed was in no rush to cut rates again.
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