Market tanks despite rate cut | The Powell comments that rocked the Dow | Apple’s ‘financial engineering’

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell took the wind out of Wall Street's sails by hinting that Wednesday's rate cut was not the start of a trend.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE WED, JUL 31, 2019 EVENING BRIEF AS OF WED, JUL 31, 2019 • 04:05 ET DJIA 26864.27 -1.23% -333.75 S&P 500 2980.38 -1.09% -32.80 NASDAQ 8175.42 -1.19% -98.19   Most Active DOW NAME LAST CHG %CHG AAPL 213.04 +4.26 +2.04% PFE 38.84 +0.05 +0.13% MSFT 136.27 -4.08 -2.91% S&P 500 NAME LAST CHG %CHG GE 10.45 -0.07 -0.67% AMD 30.45 -3.42 -10.10% AAPL 213.04 +4.26 +2.04% NASDAQ NAME LAST CHG %CHG AMD 30.45 -3.42 -10.10% AAPL 213.04 +4.26 +2.04% MSFT 136.27 -4.08 -2.91% EDITOR'S NOTE Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell curbed Wall Street's enthusiasm by hinting that Wednesday's rate cut was not the start of a trend.    The central bank slashed interest rates for the first since the financial crisis more than 10 years ago. But at a news conference after the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Powell clarified that the Fed's rate cut was a "midcycle adjustment," not necessarily the start of a lengthy cutting cycle.    The Dow dropped sharply during Powell's news conference as traders took the comments to mean that more monetary easing later this year is not a sure thing. Investors hoped the Fed would be more aggressive and would say it thought the historic economic boom was coming to an end — not just an "adjustment" for an economy in the middle of a slow expansion.  The policymaking committee cited "global developments " along with "muted inflation" as reasons for cutting the overnight lending rate by 25 basis points. The Fed also said it will end the reduction of its balance sheet. The so-called insurance rate cut was not about what's wrong with the economy now, but what could go wrong in the future.    Powell also addressed ongoing political pressure on the central bank, and said the rate cut was not the result of calls from President Donald Trump, who asked for a 50 basis point reduction just a day ahead of the Fed announcement.    Not everyone was on board with the decision, though. Both Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren and Kansas City Fed President Esther George voted to keep rates unchanged.      Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? Tell them they can sign up for CNBC's Evening Brief here. Kate Rooney | CNBC Markets Reporter @Kr00ney TOP NEWS  Dow drops after Powell hints rate cut not the start of a trend Fed Chief Powell says rate move was a 'midcycle adjustment,' hinting more cuts not a guarantee Two Fed officials disagree with decision to cut interest rates Powell says Fed will never move rates because of political factors or to prove its independence Private payroll growth tops estimates as job market shows signs of tightening The two words from Jerome Powell that rocked the financial markets Apple's stock gains the last 4 years prove 'financial engineering' via buybacks works Sen. Sherrod Brown's bill would force companies to pay workers $1 for every $1 million in buybacks Jack Dorsey is having an epic year — and he's not talking about it GE raises its 2019 forecast after earnings come in above expectations: 'We made steady progress'   CNBC PRO Top-rated Apple analyst Toni Sacconaghi: There is still a lot of uncertainty for the stock     TOP VIDEO Leon Cooperman: The only sign of euphoria I see is in the IPO market   SPECIAL REPORTS Man who called gold's recent rally says the precious metal is going even higher Under Armour just slipped into a correction, and chart suggests more room to fall   Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2019 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS