But investors now think there's a greater chance that the Fed cuts rates to juice the economy than lowers them -- despite blockbuster economic numbers released on Friday. The December jobs report showed that US payrolls surged by 312,000 jobs and wage growth accelerated to a very healthy level of 3.3%. The robust December jobs report didn't move the needle much. While Powell called the December jobs report "very strong," he stressed that the Fed is "always prepared" to shift the stance of policy if needed. "Today's jobs report shows that the picture can change fairly substantially in a short period of time," said Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC.

Source: CNN January 04, 2019 18:11 UTC