Stocks remain mixed ahead of Fed rate cut decision

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Stocks traded mixed on Monday, with tech names struggling ahead of a crucial week dominated by expectations for the Federal Reserve's first interest-rate cut in four years.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell about 0.5%. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was up more than 0.1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.5%, after strong weekly wins for the major stock gauges. A 6% surge in Intel (INTC) stock helped push the Dow to a record high close of 41,622.08.
Elsewhere, techs were under pressure as Apple (AAPL) shares lost ground amid concerns about iPhone 16 sales. The megacap's stock was down about 3% following analysts' findings that early demand for the recently updated smartphone is lagging 2023 levels.
More broadly, stocks are diverging amid rising bets that the Fed will opt for a more drastic 50 basis point cut in its monetary policy decision on Wednesday at the end of its two-day meeting.
The central bank is almost universally expected to bring in the first US rate cut in four years - a significant policy shift and an official end to a years-long tightening campaign designed to tamp down inflation.
That conviction has put investors on edge over how aggressively the Fed will lower rates, whether by 0.5% or 0.25%. A half-point move would aim to protect the labor market and reduce the risk of recession but would also risk spooking investors by signaling a dire economic outlook.
As of Monday, traders are pricing in a 63% chance of an outsized move, compared with 30% a week ago. The odds of a 25 basis point cut stand at 37%, per the CME FedWatch tool.
In other corporate news, Boeing (BA) shares were down about 1% and touched a 52-week trading low as the plane-maker implements a hiring freeze and is considering temporary furloughs amid a major strike of 33,000 of its factory workers, which began last week.
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