What the Trading Bots Got Wrong About the Fed Minutes
Despite an initial surge, the Dow closed down 167 points after the Federal Reserve released January minutes Wednesday afternoon. William De Lucy, Managing Director at Amplify Trading, was with us to break down why robots may have misunderstood the overall message delivered by the Fed.
He said the initial push higher was because algorithms were looking at the headlines, which were more dovish than the overall statement was meant to be. De Lucy said there are automatic word recognition programs that pick up words such as "gradual", which was connected to the pace of interest rate hikes. He said it seems like the algorithms got it wrong, and the A.I. was not intelligent enough.
Goldman Sachs came out with a report Thursday that revealed it expects 5 rate hikes. De Lucy said no one is expecting just three anymore. He added that one big deterrent for the Fed is that more rate hikes will cause equities to correct. Since President Trump has been putting such a focus on the strong stock market, Du Lucy expects we will see more inflation before we see rates go up.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
