What's going on?

The Federal Reserve (the Fed) cut US interest rates on Wednesday, as 84% of investors expected � but that might not be enough to keep them satisfied.

What does this mean?

The Fed lowered its �fed funds rate� target by 0.25% on Wednesday. That target helps determine the interest rate used for super short-term borrowing � a few hours, overnight � when banks move money among themselves in order to keep enough cash on hand and meet regulators� standards. And since interest rates for longer borrowing periods are linked to this benchmark, US loans should now become cheaper so as to encourage economy-boosting spending. But, as investors are all too aware, a target � even one set by the Fed � can be missed. And that�s what happened this week (tweet this)�

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Divine intervention.

US commercial banks don�t appear to have had enough cash in reserve this week to lend to other banks in overnight transactions (a.k.a �repo markets�). The shortage � for which the Fed may be partly to blame, having slowed down its own bond purchases earlier this year � pushed the aforementioned short-term interest rate above the Fed�s target. That led the US central bank to inject its own cash into the market � for the first time since the financial crisis � in order to push the interest rate back into line, which may have spooked investors.

For markets: Companies and investors at odds.

All else equal, lower rates should help companies generate higher profits. But Wednesday�s cut was expected and likely already �priced in� to companies� stocks. Company finance chiefs aren�t expecting any further cuts this year, dovetailing with the Fed�s thinking. But investors are hungry for more: as many as half think the Fed will bow to pressure from the US president and lower interest rates again this year � potentially giving the country extra leverage in its trade negotiations with China.