00:00It's Benzinga, bringing Wall Street to Main Street.
00:02The Federal Reserve held the benchmark federal funds rate at 3.50% to 3.75% on Wednesday,
00:10according to Benzinga. The move is expected to be Chair Jerome Powell's final policy decision
00:16before leadership transitions to Kevin Warsh on May 15th. Governor Stephen Moran dissented in
00:21favor of a quarter-point cut. The Fed said inflation is elevated, citing rising global
00:27energy prices, and pointed to Middle East developments as a source of uncertainty.
00:32Three members supported holding rates but opposed adding an easing bias.
00:37Traders repriced expectations in a more hawkish direction, with futures implying reduced odds
00:42of cuts and a 25% chance of a hike by April 2027. The S&P 500 fell 0.3%,
00:50while WTI crude surged more
00:53than 7% to $107. For all things money, visit Benzinga.com.
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