The U.S. Fed has been on one of its most aggressive rate-hiking sprees in decades. From zero bound interest rates at the beginning of March 2022, it has raised the benchmark rate to 5.25%-5.50%, which is the highest since early 2001.
While the Fed’s rate hikes have been among the reasons annualized CPI fell to 3.2% in October 2023 – down sharply from the peak of 9.1% in June 2022 – they have also worked to the detriment of stocks, especially growth names.
