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Early Thursday morning, investors were feeling pretty good about the trading week.  At that point, the S&P 500 was up 1% on the day and about 2.7% week-to-date, and the index had actually just pushed back above its 200-day moving average.

There was nothing we could identify in the news that caused the S&P to peak around 10 AM ET, but from that point through the closing bell on Friday, the index fell 5.3% in basically as straight of a line lower that you can draw.

Fed Chair Powell did, however, make comments in a speech at the IMF mid-day Thursday where he confirmed that a 50 basis point hike was “on the table” for the May meeting.  Markets have been pricing high odds for 50 bps hikes for some time now, but Powell’s comments basically cemented them (for now).

The Powell Fed is known for its jawboning and transparency when it comes to the path for rates.  The chart below of equities and fixed income in 2022 tells you what these two asset classes currently think of that jawboning:

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