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Opinion
Brian Chappatta

Sorry, Stock Traders, the Fed Won’t Have Your Back

Sanguine credit markets and a nudge from President Biden to deal with inflation will keep the central bank on track to raise interest rates starting in March.

A stock market rout won’t deter monetary policy makers.

A stock market rout won’t deter monetary policy makers.

Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg 

Bad news, pandemic-era investors: The Federal Reserve won’t have your back as it once did.

For newbie traders who signed up for Robinhood Markets Inc. or other online brokerages over the past 22 months, the playbook has remained constant: Buy any dips in large U.S. equity-market indexes and profit. This tried-and-true strategy persisted even amid a face-ripping rise and fall in meme stocks, cryptocurrencies and shares of unprofitable companies that relied largely on belief.