A Federal Reserve interest-rate cut on Wednesday is looking all but certain. How stocks might react as the central bank loosens policy, however, remains very much up in the air.

The artificial-intelligence bandwagon was alive and well during the second-quarter earnings reporting season, with many executives still finding ways to shoehorn the subject into their calls with Wall Street analysts.

The Federal Reserve is poised to reduce high U.S. interest rates next week in response to waning inflation. But it will be just the first in a series of rapid-fire cuts that could boost the economy and act an an insurance policy against recession.

There are already indications that more homeowners are refinancing, but the timing isn’t right for everyone.