166: Chapter 166 Federal Reserve Interest Rate Meeting

Zhao Yuan's brow furrowed; a 650 basis point rate hike was an unprecedented move.

At that moment, a trader sent over some news:

"The ruble has already started a violent surge, jumping 200 points in an instant!"

Zhao Yuan didn't dare make the call himself and immediately dialed Chen Mo's number:

"Mr. Chen! The Central Bank of Russia has made an emergency rate hike, jumping straight to 17%. The ruble is surging violently, and our floating profits are being eaten away. Should we reduce our positions first, or just close them out to hedge our risks?"

On the other end of the line, Chen Mo said nonchalantly:

"Rate hikes are useless. You've forgotten that Russia's fundamentals have already collapsed. Oil prices have plummeted, and foreign exchange reserves are insufficient. A rate hike alone won't save the exchange rate; it's just a deathbed struggle.

Continue holding the orders and don't touch anything. Trust me, it's only a matter of time before the usd breaks 80."

Chen Mo's words acted like a sedative, steadying Zhao Yuan's heart.

He hung up the phone and said to the traders:

"Mr. Chen's instructions: No movement! Firmly hold the short positions! Mr. Chen says the rate hike is useless and won't stop the ruble's collapse. Everyone, stay steady!"

The traders strictly executed Chen Mo's orders and continued to hold their short positions.

As expected, just over twenty minutes later, the positive news of the Central Bank of Russia's rate hike completely lost its effect.

More and more sell orders for the ruble appeared on the market, smashing right through the first level of buy orders. The ruble began to dive frantically again, with a decline even more violent than before.

"Mr. Zhao! The ruble has collapsed again! usd has broken 70!"

"It's broken 75! It's too fast!"

"It's broken 80! My god! usd has plummeted past 80.0 intraday, hitting a record low!"

Everyone in the trading room was dumbfounded. This was a level of market frenzy they had never seen in their lives; the speed of the crash was faster and more brutal than they had imagined.

Zhao Yuan stared at the account's profit curve on the screen, his face full of shock.

He picked up the phone, dialed Chen Mo's number, and reported:

"Mr. Chen, it's broken 80!"

"Our ruble shorts, RTS shorts, and crude oil shorts are seeing massive profits across the board. The single-day return has doubled, reaching 102%. Combined with yesterday's 18%, the total return is already 145%!"

Listening to the report, Chen Mo felt no ripple of emotion, as if he had only made a small pittance:

"Got it. Remember, at 10:00 AM on December 17th, close out all ruble, RTS, and crude oil short positions to take profits. Then, reverse and go long on usd. Keep the long positions on the us dollar index; don't touch them."

"Understood, Mr. Chen! I guarantee that at 10:00 AM on the 17th, we will close all shorts, reverse to go long on the ruble, and keep the us dollar index longs!"

Zhao Yuan replied hurriedly.

The morning of December 17th arrived quickly, and Zhao Yuan issued the reversal orders according to Chen Mo's instructions.

Zhao Yuan immediately organized the traders to execute: closing positions, taking profits, reversing, and entering the market.

Sure enough, that afternoon, the ruble began a significant rebound and recovery. It surged violently from below 80 back to the 72–73 range; in just a few hours, the rebound exceeded 10%.

Soon after, Zhao Yuan reported the good news to Chen Mo:

"Mr. Chen! We did it! The ruble rebounded, and our long positions have earned over 25% more. Over this past week, between shorting the crash and reversing to long the rebound, the total account return has reached 178%!"

Chen Mo hummed in acknowledgment and said with a smile:

"Mhm, well done. We've fully capitalized on this ruble market movement.

Next, focus on the Federal Reserve's interest rate meeting. That's the real global show. Don't let your guard down."

Zhao Yuan replied immediately:

"Understood, Mr. Chen! The whole team is prepared; there won't be any problems!"

Everyone knew that the Federal Reserve's FOMC interest rate meeting was the true key to determining the direction of global financial markets.

The meeting was scheduled for December 17th US time, which corresponded to 3:00 AM on December 18th, Yanjing time.

It was late at night in China and daytime in the US. Chen Mo had calculated this time difference long ago and specifically had the entire trading room staff on standby all night, with full benefits provided.

In the trading room of the Tianxing Building, every trader was glued to their screen.

Back at the manor, Chen Mo hadn't slept either. He sat in a chair in the command room, the screens before him synchronized with global market trends in real-time. Holding a glass of warm water, he waited for the announcement of the interest rate decision.

At 2:30 AM, half an hour before the announcement, the global financial markets were in a state of bated breath, as if waiting for some crucial command.

Zhao Yuan picked up the dedicated line to receive Chen Mo's instructions:

"Mr. Chen!"

"Yes!"

Chen Mo said:

"When there are 10 minutes left, place all pending orders: long the us dollar index, long E-mini S&P 500 futures, short comex gold, and short the EUR/USD. Place orders for all four instruments simultaneously."

"Use a uniform 10x leverage and distribute the positions equally. Don't over-concentrate; keep the risks under control."

"Understood, Mr. Chen!"

Zhao Yuan responded from his end:

"At 2:50 AM, place all pending orders: long the us dollar index and S&P futures, short gold and EUR/USD, 10x leverage, equal position distribution!"

After hanging up, Zhao Yuan immediately issued orders to the traders to be ready to place the pending orders at any moment.

At 2:50 AM, Zhao Yuan gave the command:

"Place the orders! Everyone, place the pending orders as instructed!"

The traders immediately hit the confirm keys. Four sets of orders entered the market simultaneously, waiting only for the announcement of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.

Time ticked away second by second. At exactly 3:00 AM, the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision was officially announced, instantly igniting the global financial markets.

The content of the decision was simple: first, maintain the benchmark interest rate at 0% to 0.25%; second, revise the key phrasing from "maintaining low interest rates for a considerable time" to "remaining patient."

This seemingly simple sentence was interpreted by the global market with one voice:

The Federal Reserve would officially raise interest rate in mid-2015; the global monetary cycle was officially shifting!

Almost at the same second the decision was announced, all the instruments on the screen began to fluctuate wildly:

"Filled! All orders have been filled!"

"The us dollar index is skyrocketing! It's broken 89.5!"

"S&P 500 futures are surging violently! The gain is over 1%!"

"comex gold is taking a massive dive! It's plummeted over 20 dollars in an instant!"

"The EUR/USD has also collapsed! It's broken below the 1.2300 level!"

All four instruments accurately hit Chen Mo's predictions.

Zhao Yuan then reported to Chen Mo over the dedicated line:

"Mr. Chen! The dollar is soaring, us stocks are surging, gold is crashing, and the euro is plunging. Every order is making money! We've made another 45% or more from this Federal Reserve market movement!"

In just a few short days, two major financial battles—one harvesting the collapse of the Russian ruble with a return that doubled in a week, and another betting on the Federal Reserve's interest rate shift for another 45% gain—had seen tens of billions in capital appreciate frantically under his command.

"Mhm, Zhao Yuan!"

Chen Mo's voice came through the phone:

"Calculate the total profit. Close half the positions to take profits and secure the gains. Keep the remaining half in us dollar index longs and us stocks longs."

"Yes, Mr. Chen!"