- Traders weighed hawkish comments by Fed's Powell, which hinted the central bank will take more aggressive measures to manage inflation, as equities rallied and the selloff in treasuries deepened on Tuesday.
- The S&P 500 gained, recovering half its losses now from a selloff that started in January. Meanwhile, bond rates continued to rise as short-term treasuries sank to their worst quarterly performance in nearly four decades.
- Traders are bracing for extreme volatility until there is more clarity on Fed policy, inflation, and the Ukraine conflict.
- Nonetheless, the war's impact on commodity markets has raised pressure on important central banks to tighten monetary policy. After a tumultuous session for Brent crude prices, oil in New York dipped as Germany and Hungary put the brakes on a potential Russian oil embargo.
- Last week, the Fed raised interest rates by a quarter-point and announced six more hikes this year, with Powell signaling that the bank is prepared to raise rates by 50 basis points at its next policy meeting if necessary.
- In the remaining meetings this year, derivative traders are pricing in around 7.5 quarter-point rate hikes, effectively allowing for moreover one half-point raise.