by Guest Author
Michael Markowski has been involved in the Capital Markets since 1977. He spent the first 15 years of his career in the Financial Services Industry as a Stockbroker, Portfolio Manager, Venture Capitalist, Investment Banker and Analyst. Since 1996 Markowski has been involved in the Financial Information Industry and has produced research, information and products that have been used by investors to increase their performance and reduce their risk. Read more at BullsNBears.com
The 2:00PM press conference held by US Fed Chairman Jerome Powell at the conclusion of the January 29th FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting started out with a bang. Within minutes the S&P 500 rallied to its high of the day. Shortly thereafter, the world’s leading stock index began to make lower highs and lower lows and closed near its lows for the day. From its high to its close the venerable index declined by 0.60%.
The S&P 500 declined steadily after the initial spike because Federal Reserve Chairman Powell stated that US household spending had waned from “strong” to “moderate”. He also emphasized that inflation in the US was below the Federal Reserve’s target.
The volatility caused by the FOMC’s change in conditions for the US economy has increased the probability of a global market crash happening by the end of the first quarter of 2020. See also “Wuhan Virus has potential to cause global market crash”, January 25, 2020.