Stocks plunged today after the Fed cut a key interest rate by only a quarter-point, Bloomberg reports. Investors who had hoped for a half-point fear the smaller cut won't do enough to stave off a recession. "They're thinking that the Fed doesn't get it," said a strategist. The Dow fell 294.26 to 13,432.77, the Nasdaq 66.6 to 2,652.35, and the S&P 500 38.31 to 1,477.65.
The news hit financials hard. "The market was looking for the Fed at this meeting to show a more aggressive stand either with the discount window or with the Fed funds rate and the statement,'' says a strategist. "It got neither.'' Texas Instruments and AT&T were both up slightly on raised profit forecasts. (More stock market stories.)