Are we near an inflection point in markets? I have heard numerous talking heads on CNBC recently saying that markets are near a turning point. The mantra goes something like this: the dollar is near a bottom, therefore commodities are topping out and stocks will move higher. While all this may come true, I think there are reasons to be skeptical.

On Wednesday the Federal Open Market Committee cut the federal funds rate by a quarter of a percent, bringing the key rate at which banks borrow from one another to 2 percent. However, inflation expectations have risen over the past couple of months which may start to drive mortgage rates upward.

The Fed lowered the fed funds target to 2%, then issued a policy statement that may as well have been written in Urdu for all of its clarity.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point this afternoon in yet another (7th to be exact) attempt at saving an economy in free fall. The rate now stands at 2% less than half of what it was in September.

Today the Federal Reserve Board of the United States is concluding two-day meeting in Washington, which is likely to result in another interest rate cut to bolster the U.S. Economy.

Inflation will play a major role in how the Federal Reserve decides how to handle the next rate cut and following rate cuts.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates today, but the rate cut was not as deep as many investors had hoped that it would be.

The Fed cut short term rates by 75 basis points, but they included one full paragraph in their latest statement about inflation going up.

With the market stuck in a downtrend many participants are saying “Help me Obi Ben Bernanke. You’re my only hope.” Bear Stearns managed to wipe away any chance of a pre-Fed meeting rally. Rallies leading up to Fed meetings are fairly common as investors hope for good news. Selloffs prior to meetings are not common.

U.S. stocks soar, bolstered by better-than-anticipated earnings from Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers, as well as expectations of another Federal Reserve interest rate cut later in the day.

European and Asian stock markets have dropped sharply Monday, and the dollar fell, hours after the U.S. Central Bank made moves to avert a credit crisis that threatens to plunge the U.S. economy into recession.

With the US Federal Reserve widely expected to affect a rate cut next week, analysts say gold prices could scale to new peaks.