Traders and financial professionals work at the opening bell on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), May 6, 2019 in New York City.
Drew Angerer | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Traders in the fed funds futures market made bets in record numbers this week, with the bulk of the money looking for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates aggressively in the months ahead.
Trading volume soared to 1,293,459 million contracts Wednesday, the same day the Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-1 to keep its benchmark interest rate in a target range between 2.25% and 2.5%. However, the post-meeting statement and forecasting materials pointed to a possible cut ahead and traders cemented positions.
Traders already had been expressing strong conviction that the Fed would be easing at future meetings, but that sentiment got even stronger after the meeting. The market now sees a 100% chance of a rate cut at the July 30-31 meeting, up from 85% a week ago and just 15% a month ago. For the…
