Fed more likely to act Tuesday, economist (by Greg Robb)
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Michael Moran, chief economist at Daiwa Securities America, said he was more confident in his prediction that the Federal Reserve would act Tuesday to try to counter the negative psychology in financial markets. Moran said the Fed would likely decide to lengthen the maturities of its balance sheet at its policy meeting to put downward pressure on long-term interest rates. The message would be that the Fed is "on the job," Moran said. Market psychology has been damaged by the discord in Congress and the downgrade of the U.S. top-tier AAA credit rating, he said.