Later today the Federal Reserve will announce whether it will raise interest rates for the fourth time this year, and both traders and world leaders are anxiously awaiting the announcement. Analysts expect the Fed to raise interest rates a quarter point on Wednesday, despite warnings from President Trump not to do so, and to cut back their expectations for hikes in 2019.
In addition to whether or not there will be a rate hike, analysts are waiting to hear the Fed’s tone, to see whether it is concerned about recent global financial difficulties or whether it remains calm in the face of the recent economic storm. The fed is expected to lower its growth forecast to around 2.3 percent after raising it to 2.5 percent in September.
The dollar was lower during Asian trade on Wednesday, with the dollar index falling 0.23 percent as of 2:15 p.m. HK/SIN. The greenback was lower against the yen, trading down 0.12 percent to 112.37. It was also lower against the British pound, trading at $1.2658. The euro gained 0.20 percent against the dollar, to trade at $1.1384.
Oil Plummets Overnight
Oil prices dropped overnight with Brent crude futures easing nearly 6 percent on fears of a supply glut, though it rebounded slightly on Wednesday morning. Brent crude rebounded modestly by mid-afternoon in Asia, trading at $56.59 per barrel. U.S. WTI futures were at $46.48 per barrel. Oil prices have dropped for the past three trading sessions. On Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute announced that U.S. crude stocks rose last week, bucking expectations for a decline, and gasoline inventories were higher as well. Numbers from the Energy Information Administration will be released later today, and if they confirm API data, they will confirm the first crude stockpile increase in three weeks.