US stocks tumbled to one of their worst days of the year after the Federal Reserve hinted on Wednesday it might inject fewer shots of adrenaline into the US economy next year.

The S&P 500 fell 2.9%, just shy of its biggest loss for the year, to pull further from its all-time high set a couple weeks ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1,123 points, or 2.6%, and the Nasdaq composite dropped 3.6%.

The Fed announced yesterday it is cutting its main interest rate for a third time this year,…