Wall Street Anticipates Greenspan’s Word on Rate Cut

All eyes will be on Alan Greenspan. Wall Street will rally this week if the powerful Federal Reserve chief delivers another deep interest rate cut. But don’t count on the fireworks that came after his surprise half-point reduction early this month. The pundits agree on one thing: Anything less than a half-point rate cut from the interest rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee after its Tuesday-Wednesday meeting, and the market will plunge. The latest Reuters poll of top U.S. bond firms shows most--24 of 25 firms--are expecting a half-point reduction. That argument received more fuel after Greenspan’s congressional testimony late last week, in which he said the economy has slowed so sharply that it might not be growing at all. On the economic calendar, the focus will mostly be on Friday’s employment figures for January. The jobless rate stood at 4% in December.