The second Federal Open Market Committee meeting of 2026 will likely be the second-to-last FOMC gathering chaired by Jerome Powell during his career as a central banker.
That is, of course, unless he decides to break precedent and remain on the Federal Reserve’s board after his chairmanship term expires in May — and unless ongoing Fed-related legal drama prevents Kevin Warsh from being confirmed as his successor in a timely manner.
The Fed rate decision on Wednesday is widely expected to be free of drama. More than 99% of fed funds futures traders expect the central bank to keep the benchmark borrowing rate in its current range of 3.5% to 3.75%, according to CME FedWatch.
The calculus behind those betting odds is that both sides of the Fed’...