Stocking up on dividend growth as economy slows

Can the “Steady Eddie” Fed avert a recession? A recent spate of weaker-than-anticipated economic data has some investors believing (or at least hoping) that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by as much as 50 basis points (bps) this week. While a move of that magnitude might help alleviate concerns that the end of the Fed’s historic tightening cycle may be too little, too late to prevent a recession, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has made it clear that the central bank doesn’t want to cut rates too much, too early — as this could potentially reaccelerate inflation after two years of hard-fought progress in lowering it.