Institutional: U.S. stock indexes move higher ahead of Fed resolution, but near-term trend could remain subdued

The Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate resolution later, and the market widely expects it to stay put, with major Wall Street stock indexes moving higher ahead of the resolution. For now, people are still worried about trade policy and its impact on the economy. Traders expect the Fed to cut rates at least twice by 25 basis points by December, with the first expected in July. The focus will be on policymakers' new economic forecasts, which will give an idea of how they feel President Donald Trump's policies will affect economic growth, inflation and unemployment. “We see an increasing likelihood of a weaker jobs report in the coming months,” said Chris Senyek, chief investment strategist at Wolfe Research that could ultimately lead to a rate cut by the Fed at its June meeting. Coupled with the highly uncertain path of tariffs, we conclude that the near-term trend for stocks will remain lower.’