The Week Ahead: Fed Rate Decision, Retail Sales and Oil Prices Set to Drive Wall Street

TLDR

• The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates by 25 basis points Wednesday, with futures markets pricing in an 80% to 85% chance of a hike
• August retail sales data drops Wednesday morning, which could further shape rate expectations
• Oil prices topped $100 a barrel after drone attacks shut a Saudi pipeline, adding to inflation concerns
• The 10-year Treasury yield climbed close to 5%, putting pressure on stocks and rate-sensitive sectors
• Salesforce’s Dreamforce conference kicks off Tuesday with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei listed as a speaker

The Fed meeting is the main event for Wall Street this week. The Federal Open Market Committee begins its meeting Tuesday and will announce its rate decision Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET.

Markets are pricing in roughly an 80% to 85% chance of a 25 basis point rate increase. That shift came after strong jobs data and inflation figures stayed above the Fed’s 2% target.

The Consumer Price Index rose 3.4% year over year in August, matching July’s reading. Wholesale inflation also came in hotter than expected, as measured by the Producer Price Index.

… Continue reading the full article at the original source below.