We concluded that this was the right thing for the economy and the people we serve,” the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, said, referring to the central bank’s decision to cut interest rates by half a point.

Most of the U.S. stock market edged lower after the Federal Reserve kicked off its efforts to prevent a recession with a bigger-than-usual cut to interest rates.

A more aggressive interest rate cut would suggest deeper worries that the job market is buckling under the Fed’s continued fight against inflation.