Market Overview - The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided to keep interest rates steady at +4.25-4.50% during its five meetings in 2025, acknowledging moderated growth but stable unemployment and labor market conditions [2][4] - Fed Chair Powell indicated that tariffs are beginning to impact inflation metrics, with the latest CPI Inflation Rate rising to +2.7% [5][4] - Market indexes experienced declines following Powell's statements, although the Nasdaq managed a slight gain of +0.15% by the close [1][6] Company Earnings Reports - Microsoft reported fiscal Q4 earnings of $3.65 per share, exceeding expectations by $0.30, with revenues of $76.4 billion, up +18% year over year, driven by a +39% increase in its Azure cloud business [6] - Meta Platforms significantly surpassed earnings projections with $7.14 per share against an anticipated $5.83, and revenues of $47.52 billion, up from $44.84 billion, with a +6% increase in Daily Active People to 3.48 billion [7] - Ford Motor Co. reported Q2 earnings per share of $0.37, exceeding estimates, with revenues over $50 billion, but shares fell due to $800 million in costs attributed to direct tariff exposure [9] - Qualcomm's fiscal Q3 earnings were $2.77 per share, beating expectations by $0.07, but revenues of $10.37 billion slightly missed the forecast, leading to a -4.6% drop in shares [10]
Markets Sink on Powell Presser Message, Plus Earnings: MSFT, META & More