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The local share market is edging lower this morning following hawkish comments by Fed chairman Jerome Powell.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 13.2 points or 0.18 per cent, to 7238.1 at noon AEDT on Thursday, while the All Ordinaries was down 16.4 points, or 0.21 per cent, 7422.8.
Before the market opened the Federal Reserve raised US interest rates by 50 basis points, as expected, but disclosed "dot plots" upwardly revising the Fed funds rate to peak at 5.1 per cent at the end of 2023.
Powell also stuck to his "we have more to do" narrative, saying that while US consumer price rises had shown signs of peaking, the central bank required "substantially more evidence that inflation is on a sustained downward path".
The major Wall Street indices swung between gains and losses as traders digested the decision and its commentary, with the S&P500 falling as much as 1.3 per cent, recovering to a slight gain but then closing 0.5 per cent lower.
The ASX's 11 official sectors were mixed at midday, with five up - most modestly - and six down.
Materials were the biggest loser, falling 0.8 per cent amid a dour morning for lithium producers. Pilbara was down 10 per cent, Mineral Resources had dropped 4.8 per cent and IGO had dipped 6.2 per cent.
Elsewhere in the sector, BHP was 0.2 per cent lower at $46.24, Fortescue Metals was down 0.1 per cent to $20.435, but Rio Tinto was up 0.7 per cent to $115.515.
In the heavyweight financial sector, the big retail banks were all gaining ground, with NAB up 0.7 per cent, CBA up 0.5 per cent, Westpac advancing 0.4 per cent and ANZ up 0.1 per cent.
Woolworths was up 0.2 per cent as the supermarket giant agreed to pay $586m for a majority stake in Petspiration Gorup, the family-owned company that owns the PETstock chain of speciality pet stores.
Select Harvest was down 1.9 per cent to $4.13 as the almond producer predicted a 2023 crop of 30,000 metric tonnes, up from 29,250 delivered in 2022. The company said it had made no sales commitments for next year's crop, with buyers purchasing on a short time horizon as they try to understand the impact of inflation and consumer confidence on the market.
