‘Do They Have Enough Ammo?’: Markets Mull Potency of a Powell Put

As far as the risk-on crowd is concerned, Jerome Powell’s put is in play. The question in markets deluged by trade war tweets and economic gloom is how quickly it will be exhausted.

Stocks rallied the most since January on Tuesday in reaction to the Federal Reserve chairman’s three-sentence reference to monitoring risks and being prepared to act, and added to that on Wednesday. But long-term Treasury yields still reflect deep pessimism about growth, with 10-year yields at just 2.13% -- below the Fed’s policy rate.