Federal Reserve Actions - The Federal Reserve lowered the target range for the Fed funds rate by a quarter percentage point to 3.50%-3.75% for the third consecutive time, with a 9-3 vote [1] - Fed officials' median forecasts indicate one quarter-percentage-point cut in 2026 and another in 2027, reflecting greater uncertainty about future rate cuts [1] - Policymakers authorized new purchases of short-term Treasury securities to maintain an "ample" level of bank reserves [1] Economic Data - The U.S. employment cost index rose by +0.8% quarter-over-quarter in Q3, which was weaker than the expected +0.9% [2] - Economists expect U.S. Initial Jobless Claims to be 220K, up from last week's 191K, and anticipate a widening trade deficit to -$62.5 billion from -$59.6 billion in August [9] Stock Market Movements - Wall Street's three main equity benchmarks closed higher, with GE Vernova surging over +15% after increasing earnings projections and boosting dividends [3] - Oracle Corporation's shares plunged over -12% in pre-market trading due to weaker-than-expected FQ2 cloud sales and a raised full-year capital expenditures forecast [5][16] - Photronics jumped over +45% after posting better-than-expected FQ4 results and providing upbeat FQ1 guidance [3] Futures and Bond Market - December S&P 500 E-Mini futures are down -0.35%, and December Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures are down -0.65% due to concerns over AI-related spending [6] - The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note is at 4.143%, down -0.67% [11] International Market Insights - The Euro Stoxx 50 Index is up +0.44%, led by gains in bank and industrial stocks, despite declines in technology stocks due to Oracle's performance [12] - Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Index closed lower, influenced by a slump in technology stocks, particularly SoftBank Group, which was affected by Oracle's results [14] - China's economy showed a year-to-date GDP growth of 5.2% year-over-year, with expectations for a growth target of around 5% for the coming year [13]