Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is known for providing clear signals about the central bank’s next interest rate move in order to avoid roiling markets. But Wall Street was mostly clueless this week when it came to predicting how big a rate cut the Fed would deliver on Wednesday.

After the Fed’s pivotal interest rate cut this week, policymakers face the question of how much further to reduce borrowing costs, and how fast.

The Fed made an unexpected half-point rate cut, its first since 2020, as it aims to balance robust employment with its inflation target. Learn more about the economic implications, market reactions and future projections.