NEW YORK (CNN/MONEY) -
Stocks sold off across the board on Monday, undermined by investors' fears of higher inflation and rising interest rates. In large part, those fears were a response to Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan's comments last week that the Fed is "prepared to do what is required." That's a euphemism for raising interest rates to restrain inflation.
But whatever Greenspan announces over the next three or four weeks is likely to be positive for stocks long-term, rather than a cause for concern. Stock prices have discounted bad news that has already occurred. What matters going forward is inflation -- and moderate increases in short-term interest rates should restrain it.
To understand what Fed policy really means for the market, you have to look at long-term trends the way the Fed does. So here's a Fed's eye view of what's happening now.
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