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Investing.com — U.S. stocks fell on Friday as investors brace for next week’s Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.
At 9:45 ET (13:45 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 334 points, or 1.1%, while the S&P 500 was down 1.3% and the NASDAQ Composite fell 1.6%.
Stocks were falling as FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) shares dropped 23% in early trading after reporting a weak outlook because of declining volume, further stoking fears of an economic slowdown.
The Fed’s meeting starts Tuesday, with the decision due out Wednesday, and Chair Jerome Powell will have a press conference that afternoon to outline the policymakers’ thought process.
The central bank is widely expected to raise its benchmark rate by a 0.75 percentage point after an inflation report this week that showed prices continued to be elevated despite a recent drop in the cost of gasoline. There is a chance, according to some Fed watchers, that the policymakers move rates up a full point.
Two international bodies, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, also have sober outlooks. The World Bank said the global economy might be heading toward a recession, and the IMF expects a third-quarter slowdown, according to Reuters.
General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) shares fell 5% after its finance chief said supply chain challenges continue to affect its ability to deliver products.
Oil rose. Crude Oil WTI Futures was up 0.2%, to $85.28 a barrel, while Brent Oil Futures crude rose 0.6%, to $91.42 a barrel. Gold Futures fell 0.6% to $1666 an ounce.
