Stock futures opened lower Wednesday evening as investors contemplated the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy decision and updated projections, which signaled a quicker path to higher interest rates than previously anticipated.

Each of the three major stock indexes ended Wednesday's session lower after the Fed's new projections pointed to two rate hikes by year-end 2023.

Federal Open Market Committee members also upgraded their forecasts for economic growth and inflation, affirming market participants' concerns over sustainably higher prices.

"There was a more hawkish tone from the Federal Reserve, mostly coming from the Committee but [Fed Chair Jerome] Powell also offered an upbeat assessment of the economy with small steps toward the exit," Michelle Meyer, Bank of America U.S.

Economist, said in a note Wednesday.

Powell said during his press conference Wednesday that the economy ultimately remained "a ways off" from reaching "substantial further progress" toward the Fed's goal of maximum employment that would signal a start to tapering. .

"Even with the eventual tapering of asset purchases, and subsequent moderate increase in interest rates, we think it’s clear that the backdrop for the economy will generate significant employment improvement," Rick Rieder, BlackRock's chief investment officer of global fixed income, said in an email. .

Stocks traded mixed Wednesday morning as investors looked ahead to a key monetary policy decision from the Federal Reserve.

Coming out of these corrections, it is common to see another leg higher in the market, and there are three historical precedents that demonstrate that.

The Federal Reserve announced Wednesday that it was keeping interest rates near zero for now but indicated that it may raise rates sooner than previously expected in response to strong growth and rising inflationary pressures.

“Progress on vaccinations has reduced the spread of COVID-19 in the United States,” the Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement.

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