Page 2 - Hawkish Comments News Today

"The case for owning equities is the strongest now than it has been in all of 2022," Fundstrat's Tom Lee said, predicting a major stock rally on deck.

US stocks took a hit as protests dragged on in China, which could exacerbate supply-chain issues and hinder the Fed's inflation fight.

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The S&P 500 could reach 4,400-4,500 by the end of the year, as easing inflation means discounting hawkish Fed talk, Fundstrat said.

US stocks closed lower Monday, losing steam after last week's blistering rally. Meanwhile, crypto markets are still gripped by the chaos of FTX's collapse.

A Fed pivot from aggressive rate hikes is coming - and the central bank needs to stop flinching at rising stock prices, Fundstrat's Tom Lee said.

The Fed issued another 75bp rate hike on Wednesday, bringing the fed funds rate to its highest level since 2008 as it struggles to tame inflation.

A pause in rate hikes could lead stocks exceed the rally seen in July, when investors had first started hoping the Fed would pivot from its rate hikes.

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The CPI data will be the last one the Federal Reserve sees before its May meeting. It is expected to hike rates by 50 basis points at its meeting.