The Federal Reserve kept rates at the conclusion of its meeting Wednesday, fueling a rally for stocks to start November.
Stock futures are near flat Wednesday night as investors shifted focus from the Federal Reserve's policy decision to the latest batch of corporate earnings reports.and the subsequent press conference with Jerome Powell, the central bank's chair. Powell said he would not rule out a rate increase at the December meeting, leaving market participants unsure of when the hiking cycle would end.
"We expected Powell to talk tough and do his best to keep markets from taking the two successive 'skips' in interest rate hikes as a green light for risk assets," said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for the Independent Advisor Alliance. But, "we were surprised at how detailed he has been in his language that the Fed is still worried about inflation and wouldn't hesitate to raise rates again in the near future.
Looking ahead, traders will watch for Thursday morning data on jobless claims, labor costs, productivity and factory orders. Closely watched statistics on nonfarm payrolls, the unemployment rate and hourly wages are slated for release on Friday morning.
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