Federal Open Market Committee meetings and stock market performance

Abstract

This paper examines an interesting calendar effect—a relationship between contemporaneous stock market returns and Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting dates. Examining S&P 500 stock market returns between 1960 and 2000, the study finds that there is a positive and significant calendar effect associated with FOMC meeting dates. The data reveal that while FOMC meeting dates only accounted for 4.42% of the trading days, FOMC meeting date returns accounted for over 13% of the cumulative returns over the time period. Using a dummy variable for FOMC meeting dates, regression results find that the FOMC meeting dates have a significantly positive effect on overall market returns.