The long-anticipated cut, larger than the typical quarter-percent (25 bps) drop, was the first since the Fed started raising rates in 2022 to curb skyrocketing inflation.

How much it will reshape the 2024 White House race is unclear, but it may pay a small dividend to Vice President Kamala Harris. That’s because the reduction – a signal of optimism from the central bank that the war on inflation is being won – could mean smaller payments on things like credit cards and car loans,

U.S. stock index futures jumped on Thursday, with those linked to the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbing 2% after the Federal Reserve started its easing cycle with a jumbo 50-basis-point cut to interest rates,