Stocks To Watch: All Eyes On The Federal Reserve

Summary:

Get ahead of the market by subscribing to Seeking Alpha’s Stocks to Watch, a preview of key events scheduled for the coming week. The newsletter keeps you informed of the biggest stories set to make headlines, including upcoming IPOs, investor days, earnings reports and conference presentations.

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The headliner event of the week will be a crucial two-day meeting of the Federal Reserve’s policy-making committee with some investors on a razor’s edge over the potential for an unexpectedly hawkish tilt. At the time of publication, futures trading implies a 74.5% probability of a 25 basis point rate hike by the Fed and a 25.5% chance of no hike at all. The odds for a 50-point hike are now effectively off the table after being a betting favorite just a few weeks ago. Opinion is divided on the tactics the central bank should take given the recent events. Bank of America forecasts the target range will be raised appropriately by the Fed by 25 points to 4.75% to 5.00% with the short-term loans offered through the Bank Term Funding Program seen as an effective backstop to more banking fallout. However, Moody’s analyst Mark Zandi is firm that the Fed should not tighten policy due to higher recession risks. “If they raise rates, that qualifies as a mistake, and I would call it an egregious mistake,” he warned.

Outside of the Fed drama, economic reports, due to pouring in, include the existing home sales update on March 20, the new home sales numbers on March 23, and the durable goods orders report on March 24. The corporate calendar features one of the biggest events of the year for Nvidia (



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