The Federal Reserve proceeded with an increase in its interest rates by 25 basis points, to the range of 3.75%-4%, confirming analysts' estimates.
Officials expect one more interest rate increase this year and estimate that they will keep them unchanged in 2027. The new forecasts show that interest rates will begin to decline again in 2028, while they are projected to stand between 3.5% and 3.75% in 2029.
At the same time, Fed officials revised upward their short-term inflation estimates. They forecast that the headline personal consumption expenditures price index (PCE) will stand at 3.7%, while the core index, which excludes food and energy prices, at 3.4%. Both forecasts were 0.1 percentage point higher than those of June.
“Inflation is too high and remains so for too long,” stressed Fed Chairman, Kevin Warsh.
On the other hand, Donald Trump called on the Fed to cut interest rates, quickly, to 1% or even lower, for the good of the country.
Meanwhile, the BoE Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to keep the Bank Rate unchanged at 3.75%, in line with market estimates.
The announcements of the BoJ follow (Friday 18/9 06.00).
According to the economic calendar, the next meetings - announcements of the ECB are scheduled for 29/10 and 17/12/2026.
The corresponding ones of the Fed are scheduled for 28/10 and 9/12/2026.
Coming to the ASE, on this day and exactly 27 years ago (17/9/1999), the General Index of the Greek stock market recorded an intraday high at 6484.38 points and completed trading at 6355.04 points, which is also the highest close in its history, with turnover touching 1.8 billion euros (613.35 billion drachmas), in a session about whose “strangeness” much was written.
The total capitalization of Sofokleous (as it was called then), at the close of that day reached 69.382 trillion drachmas, or 212 billion euros, an amount corresponding to 182% of the GDP at the time.
During September 1999, about 585000 investors, out of a total of more than 1.5 million codes, had carried out at least one stock market transaction.
Much later and specifically on 6/11/2007, the banking index recorded its own historically highest close at 1551614 points (adjusted closing price).
“The probability that today’s generation of investors will see the General Index return to its historical highs of 1999 appears limited since, based on today’s data, such a rise would require a stock market value on the order of 450 billion euros. Markets, however, exist mainly to disprove certainties,” stresses Manos Hatzidakis (Beta Sec.).
Coming to today, it could easily be argued that the session held on the ASE was characterized by nervousness and alternating signs, despite the slight retreat in oil and yields in the bond market, while for the umpteenth time the stocks with a negative sign “led the race from start to finish.”
It is worth noting that for a fourth consecutive session, the General Index tested, intraday, prices higher than the psychological threshold of 2700 points, but the close of trading found it noticeably lower.
Discussions in brokerage offices are focused on tomorrow’s rebalancing for the upgrade of the market to Developed from Emerging, with the ASE getting the “ticket” for entry into Developed Markets from Stoxx, S&P DJI and FTSE Russell, but also on what follows in next week’s sessions.
It is recalled that National Bank, Eurobank, Piraeus Bank, Alpha Bank, PPC, METLEN, GEK TERNA, Motor Oil and Jumbo will be included in the EuroStoxx 600 index.
It will be preceded by September’s “triple witching” in the derivatives market, with whatever this may imply for volatility, but also the value of transactions (!)
On the evening of the same day, the “verdict” of Moody's (rating “Baa3” and stable outlook) and Scope Ratings (rating “BBB” with positive outlook) is expected for Greek creditworthiness.
The next scheduled assessments of Greek creditworthiness will take place on: 23 October 2026: Standard & Poor's. 6 November 2026: Fitch Ratings (completion of the annual cycle).
According to an experienced analyst – associate of the column, “tomorrow’s session will require increased attention from active traders, as the expiration of contracts in the derivatives market, portfolio restructurings and increased transactions are likely to create moves that will not necessarily reflect the market’s real mood. In such periods psychology can easily lead to hasty moves. Let us allow the market to confirm its intentions to us before we make our decisions. In the short term the market has evolved into a huge ‘trap’, where interest, superficially, remains focused on the few index-heavy stocks that continue to receive inflows, however in the ‘middle and lower layers’ of the board, the ‘slaughter of the innocents’ is underway, as a large number of mid and smaller capitalization stocks are retreating to multi-month, or even multi-year lows. If the phenomenon continues in the coming weeks as well, the ‘lovers’ of lower capitalizations may have to adapt to the new data”.
In addition to the above, there are also the more negatively minded. According to them “from the new week there are two scenarios. The bad scenario calls for a controlled correction in the index-heavy stocks that outperformed in the last upward wave and a selective search for new positive protagonists, and the very bad one calls for a generalized retreat across the entire breadth of the board”.
On the front of first-half corporate results, today Lavipharm and Profile publish, while on Friday 18 September the week concludes with the announcements of Ellaktor and Kekrops.
With positive signs and a mood for reaction the major European markets, with traders regaining confidence from the corrective move in oil prices and even more so in yields in the bond market.
More specifically, the yield on the US 2-year note falls to 4.68%, that of the 10-year to 4.95%. The yield on the 30-year at 5.30%. The yield on the Greek 10-year note at 4.241%.
The General Index moved between 2712.08 (+0.49%) and 2672.73 points (-0.96%). At 17.00 it stood at 2681.38 (-0.64%) and completed trading at 2687.91 points, with daily losses of 0.40%.
Turnover, the highest of the last 13 sessions, at 546.5 million, of which 101.7 million concern pre-agreed transactions (CREDIA, CENER, TITC, QLCO, BOCHGR, MTLN, OPTIMA, NBG, PPC, TPEIR, EUROB, INTEK, ALPHA, KRI, SAR, ELPE, BELA, GEKTERNA), with EUROB, TPEIR, NBG, ALPHA accounting for 48% of the total gross transaction value.
Of the total turnover of 546.5 million, 520.8 million concern transactions in FTSE25 shares.