Stocks retreated on Tuesday as Wall Street watched for updates out of the Federal Reserve policy meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 58 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 slid 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.4%.
The central bank’s two-day meeting begins on Tuesday. The Fed is not expected to raise rates when announcing its decision Wednesday, with traders pricing in a 99% probability that the central bank skips a hike, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, a gauge of pricing in fed funds futures. Traders are putting just a 29% chance of a hike in November.
The Fed will also offer market forecasts on Wednesday. Investors will watch for commentary around the path of inflation and future path of interest rates.
“The Fed remains focused on engineering a soft landing in the US economy,” said Joseph Gaffoglio, president of mutual at America Capital Management. “Though consumer spending stayed strong through the summer months, we anticipate that spending will begin to slow, as excess savings from stimulus payments received during the pandemic finally run out, and many younger Americans face the prospect of restarting student loan payments.”
The major averages are coming off a largely flat session on Monday, with the S&P 500 inching up 0.07%. The Nasdaq Composite eked out a 0.01% gain, while the 30-stock Dow edged up 0.02%, or 6.06 points.
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