THE US Federal Reserve's quantitative easing programme is officially dead, but its ghost will continue to haunt the US stock market - at least until the Fed's next move becomes clear.

US stocks and bonds fell slightly on Wednesday after chairwoman Janet Yellen's Federal Reserve confirmed that its bond-buying exercise would be consigned to the crypt on Friday - Halloween.

For six years, the Fed's sorcery in the bond market had helped to keep mortgage and loan rates at historic lows. Now, the economy and stock market must contend with the ghouls of rising rates without Ben Bernanke or Janet Yellen's magic wand. For those who had expected a concession to the recent weakness in world markets and manufacturing data, the Fed's tone was frighteningly hawkish. While Ms Yellen's rate-setting board reiterated a promise to keep rates low for a "considerable time", the assessment of the economy was almost glowing.