NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) – The prospect of a less expansive monetary policy by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) weighed slightly on Wall Street on Wednesday. The leading index Dow Jones Industrial expanded its recent losses in early trading, dropping 0.29 percent to 35,441.05 points. The market-wide S&P 500 
fell 0.26 percent to 4622.07 points. For the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 it went down 0.41 percent to 15,849.73 points.
In late trading, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will comment on growth and inflation, among other things. In the eyes of the markets is the bond purchase program of the central bank, which was launched during the Corona crisis to support the economy. Economists expect the central bank to curb monthly purchases more quickly than previously planned – despite ongoing pandemic concerns about the Omikron variant of the coronavirus. As a result, the Fed could raise key interest rates earlier than previously expected in the coming year, which would make fixed-income bonds more attractive compared to stocks.
– .
