US Markets Slump: Nasdaq and S&P 500 Fall as Fed Signals Hawkish Shift

Wall Street faced a significant downturn on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve's recent policy stance sent shockwaves through the equity markets. Investors reacted sharply to signals of potential interest rate hikes, causing major indices to retreat after a period of recent gains.

Federal Reserve Holds Rates but Signals Hawkish Future

While the Federal Reserve maintained interest rates within the 3.50%-3.75% range as widely anticipated, the underlying sentiment was decidedly "hawkish." The central bank's policy statement notably removed previous language that had suggested the possibility of rate cuts later this year. This shift suggests that the Fed is prioritizing the fight against inflation, particularly following price pressures caused by oil-price spikes during the Iran war.

New quarterly projections revealed that nine central bank officials now expect at least one interest rate hike by the end of 2026. In a departure from standard procedure, new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh did not submit a formal interest-rate-path projection. Instead, he emphasized the central bank's unwavering commitment to delivering price stability, a move that has heightened market uncertainty.

Market Reaction: Indices Slide Amid Rising Hike Bets

The shift in sentiment was immediately reflected in the trading data. According to the CME Group's FedWatch tool, trader bets that rates would remain steady through the end of the year plummeted from 40% on Tuesday to just 15.7% following the announcement. The market is now pricing in significant volatility, with expectations for a 25-basis-point hike by December standing at nearly 38%, while a 50-basis-point hike carries a 33% probability.

The major indices bore the brunt of this shift:

Geopolitical Volatility and Individual Stock Movers

فراتر از تصمیمات فدرال رزرو، تنش‌های ژئوپلیتیک نقش تعیین‌کننده‌ای در نوسانات بازار ایفا کردند. رالی‌های قبلی که بر پایه امید به توافق صلح میان آمریکا و ایران شکل گرفته بود، پس از آنکه پرزیدنت دونالد ترامپ اعلام کرد این توافق نهایی نیست و هشدار داد که احتمال از سرگیری درگیری‌ها وجود دارد، تضعیف شد. این عدم قطعیت منجر به بازگشت قیمت نفت شد و فشار تورمی بیشتری را به بازار تحمیل کرد.

در بخش اخبار تک‌سهم‌ها، سهام CME Group پس از اعلام خبر انتقال تری دافی (Terry Duffy)، مدیرعامل شرکت، به سمت ریاست اجرایی هیئت مدیره در اول مارس، با کاهش مواجه شد. در مقابل، سهام Allbirds پس از تغییر نام تجاری شرکت به "Smartbird" و تغییر مسیر از تولید کفش به سمت مدلی متمرکز بر هوش مصنوعی (AI) و انتصاب نادیا کارلستن (Nadia Carlsten)، مدیر سابق آمازون، به عنوان مدیرعامل جدید، شاهد جهش بزرگی بود.

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