By Harvey S Katz – Re-Blogged From Value Line
In a widely telegraphed and, therefore, fully expected move, the Federal Reserve Board voted to reduce its federal funds rate target by another 25 basis points this afternoon. That was the second such rate cut in as many meetings and followed a decade in which there had been no reductions–only increases in 2017 and 2018.
However, the central bank did not signal that there would be additional rate action this year, which disappointed many traders and sent the stock market down sharply in the minutes following this rate move. In fact, after dawdling at modestly lower levels through the morning and early afternoon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average quickly fell to a session-worst 185-point setback.