Markets eye US Fed policy meeting

By Aysu Bicer

ANKARA (AA) - Global markets have their eyes trained on the US Fed's Wednesday decision on interest rates and asset purchases, with economists predicting it will make no changes on either.

The Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) is set to hold its November meeting on Wednesday, just a day after the 2020 presidential election.

"The Fed will stay put next week and will not adjust policy in all likelihood," according to Bernd Weidensteiner, an economist at Commerzbank.

Referring to the latest statement by the Fed, Weidensteiner said: "We don't expect any changes in quantitative easing. In the last statement, they promised to purchase bonds at least in the current amount over the coming months."

This will stand unchanged, he noted, adding that the bank's forward verbal guidance was also expected to remain as it is.

Sharing the same view, Mickey Levy, the chief economist at Berenberg Capital Markets, said the Fed would announce no policy changes at the coming meeting.

Most Federal Reserve leaders expected to keep interest rates near zero for at least the next three years.

The bank's current policy rate stands at 0-0.25%.