We cross our fingers, we hope itвЂ™s lower than it was the month before. вЂњWe have capitulated to this view that we just donвЂ™t know what the next inflation print is going to look like. вЂњThis is tough to admit for everybody, including Fed Chair Powell, but we donвЂ™t have a crystal ball, the Fed does not have a crystal ball on inflation,вЂќ Anastasia Amoroso, the chief investment strategist at iCapital, said on an episode of the вЂњWhat Goes UpвЂќ podcast. Now, with inflation out of control and odds of a recession rising fast, figuring out what will happen next is proving impossible. There was a time when investors could be relatively certain about where the central bank was headed, even in times of stress. With precious little to base an investment case on, it took them less than a day to decide to sell everything.

Traders looking to bet on the path of Federal Reserve policy and its impact on the economy griped about being flummoxed after Chair Jerome PowellвЂ™s press conference Wednesday. Other disappointing data, including sagging spending at retailers and soured consumer sentiment, have raised concerns the FedвЂ™s actions could wind up being too aggressive.(Bloomberg) - Fifty or 75? Headline or core? Prices at the pump and in the basket, or expectations for what theyвЂ™ll one day be? The latest was a report on Friday showing the nationвЂ™s industrial production was weaker last month than expected. The FedвЂ™s moves are happening as some discouraging signals have emerged about the economy, even if the jobs market remains solid. That should put upward pressure on longer-term interest rates and is another way central banks are yanking supports earlier propped underneath markets to bolster the economy. The Fed has also just begun allowing some of the trillions of dollars of bonds it purchased through the pandemic to roll off its balance sheet. It could consider another such mega-hike at its next meeting in July, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell said increases of three-quarters of a percentage point would not be common. On Wednesday, the Fed hiked its key short-term interest rate by triple the usual amount for its biggest increase since 1994. вЂњThereвЂ™s a lot of uncertainty right now about the timing of a recession, but the risks are clearly rising,вЂќ Horneman said. ItвЂ™s now 23.4% below its all-time high set in January and is back to where it was in late 2020. The S&P 500 remains in a bear market after it earlier this week dropped more than 20% below its record. вЂњAny lack of clarity or lack of confidence in the Federal Reserve is going to create a lot of volatility in the market,вЂќ said Megan Horneman, chief investment officer at Verdence Capital Advisors. Higher rates can bring down inflation, but they also risk a recession by slowing the economy and push down on prices for stocks, bonds, cryptocurrencies and other investments. Markets around the world have been shuddering as investors adjust to the bitter medicine of higher interest rates that the Federal Reserve and other central banks are increasingly doling out.

ThatвЂ™s its worst week since March 2020, when stocks were in free-fall as the global economy suddenly shut down at the onset of the pandemic. The S&P 500 lost 5.8% for its tenth drop in the last 11 weeks.

The relatively quiet trading capped a brutal, tumultuous week for Wall Street. The S&P 500 rose 8.07 points, or 0.2%, to 3,674.84 after waffling between modest losses and gains for most of the day. NEW YORK (AP) - Wall Street closed out its most punishing week since the 2020 coronavirus crash with a meandering day of trading Friday that left it a bit higher.

Stock photo gun pointed at screen