John Authers, Columnist

Powell Won’t Welcome Being Seen as Dovish

The market’s huge reaction to 75-basis-points hikes coming off the table doesn’t get the Fed where it wants to go.

May 5, 2022 at 5:00 AM UTC

John Authers is a senior editor for markets and Bloomberg Opinion columnist. A former chief markets commentator at the Financial Times, he is author of “The Fearful Rise of Markets.”

Powell’s assurance that the Fed won’t be hiking by 75 basis points triggered the biggest stock market rally in two years. — Powell’s assurance that the Fed won’t be hiking by 75 basis points triggered the biggest stock market rally in two years.
Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg

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This was a historic day on Wall Street. The Federal Reserve administered its biggest rate hike in 22 years as it raised the fed funds rate by 50 basis points. And in response, the stock market had its best day in two years, with the S&P 500 gaining almost 3%, virtually all of it coming after the news from the Fed: