US Federal Reserve Meeting: Investors and analysts will closely monitor the US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) outcomes, which could potentially influence market trends in 2026. The two-day meeting is scheduled on December 9 and December 10.
At its 2025 meeting, the FOMC is expected to consider a rate cut, currently ranging between 3.75% and 4%. The Fed has previously eased rates by 0.25% at two successive meetings to prevent a softening job market from worsening into a sharp unemployment spike.
According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which assesses the probability of rate cuts, there is an 89.4% possibility of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the upcoming meeting, CBS News reported. A 0.25% cut would bring the federal funds rate down to around 3.5% to 3.75%.
The probability of a rate cut has risen in recent weeks, driven by signs of weakening in the job market alongside surveys showing the public’s gloomy outlook on employment, reported Investopedia.
However, the Investopedia report adds that a rate cut is far from guaranteed. Following the October FOMC meeting, Fed Chair Jerome Powell urged caution, underscoring that the panel remains split between those favouring rate cuts to safeguard jobs and others advocating keeping rates elevated longer to rein in inflation.
