The Federal Reserve increased interest rates on Wednesday, its ninth rate hike since March 2022. It also signaled that its rate hike policy is nearing its end, depending on available data, which is a shift from previous messages that “ongoing increases” were likely. Fed Chair Jerome Powell remarked in a press conference that recent unrest in the banking system was likely to tighten credit conditions, which was a factor in the central bank’s recent shift in policy. He also noted that the U.S. banking system is “sound and resilient.” The stocks climbed at first after the Fed’s decision but tumbled after Powell's statements.