The decision by the Fed's policy-setting committee to cut interest rates for the first time since March 2020 was prefaced by an unusual amount of market uncertainty as to how much the central bank would lower its benchmark rate from a two-decade high of 5.25% to 5.5%, where it has stood since July 2023.

Stocks jumped Thursday morning as investors cheered the Federal Reserve’s eye-popping half-point interest rate cut.

The cut came in at the high end of expectations and marks a turnabout for a Fed that has been fighting inflation since 2022.