Forget the Fed, and Focus on the Economy

What matters for long-run returns is getting the direction right, and the Fed’s fine-tuning misses the point

The Fed delivered a hawkish statement, but Chair Jerome Powell held what markets viewed as a dovish press conference. . Photo: Sarah Silbiger

It’s easy to get caught up in whether the Federal Reserve will raise rates 0.25 or 0.5 percentage point (probably the latter) or whether it will start cutting again by the end of the year (almost certainly not), and invest accordingly. But it is time to step back. Only rarely should investors care about what the Fed says or even what it does at its meetings.

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