New Analysis The Federal Reserve finished its much-anticipated two-day November Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy meeting Wednesday. The results were everything financial markets had anticipated, market strategists said. Later this month, the central bank confirmed, the Fed will begin tapering its $120-billion-a-month asset-buying program, with plans to wind down the pandemic-era quantitative easing program by next summer. The U.S. central bank also plans to remain “patient” on red-hot inflation as it wants to “see the labor market heal further.” The Fed’s announcement, and Chair Jerome Powell’s subsequent remarks, did not rattle equities. So, what does this mean for the broader financial markets and U.S. economy moving forward? Rate Hikes Coming Sooner to Fight Inflation? The FOMC agreed to leave interest rates near zero as the economic recovery marches toward its objectives. But could it raise rates earlier than what policymakers penciled in? Powell conceded that inflation will last “well into …