U.S. Stocks Fall as FedEx Warning Stokes Global Slowdown Fears

By Liz Moyer

Investing.com — U.S. stocks fell on Friday as investors brace for next week’s Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.

At 9:45 ET (13:45 GMT), the was down 334 points, or 1.1%, while the was down 1.3% and the fell 1.6%.

Stocks were falling as FedEx Corporation (NYSE:) shares dropped 23% in early trading after reporting a weak outlook because of declining volume, further stoking fears of an economic slowdown.

The Fed’s meeting starts Tuesday, with the due out Wednesday, and Chair Jerome Powell will have a press conference that afternoon to outline the policymakers’ thought process.

The central bank is widely expected to raise its benchmark rate by a 0.75 percentage point after an this week that showed prices continued to be elevated despite a recent drop in the cost of gasoline. There is a chance, according to some Fed watchers, that the policymakers move rates up a full point.

Two international bodies, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, also have sober outlooks. The World Bank said the global economy might be heading toward a recession, and the IMF expects a third-quarter slowdown, according to Reuters.

General Electric Company (NYSE:) shares fell 5% after its finance chief said supply chain challenges continue to affect its ability to deliver products.

Oil rose. was up 0.2%, to $85.28 a barrel, while crude rose 0.6%, to $91.42 a barrel. fell 0.6% to $1666 an ounce.

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