The Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates at its final meeting of the year. Amid mounting worries about the economic outlook for 2019, the Fed is also expected to emphasize that future rate hikes will depend on the continued strength of the domestic economy.

Fed Chairman Jerome H. Powell faces the challenge of convincing investors that the Fed is striking the right balance. The Fed will issue a policy statement and a set of economic projections at 2 p.m. Mr. Powell will then hold a news conference at 2:30 p.m. to answer questions about the Fed’s plans.

Here is what to watch as we head into Fed Day.

Another rate increase

The Fed on Wednesday is widely expected to recognize the continued strength of the economy by announcing a quarter-point increase in its benchmark interest rate after a two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. It would be the fifth consecutive quarter in which the Fed has raised its benchmark rate. The rate would move into a range between 2.25 percent and 2.5 percent.

The Fed also is expected to announce that it will continue to reduce its portfolio of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, which it accumulated after the financial crisis as part of its broader campaign to hold down borrowing costs. The holdings, which peaked at about $4.5 trillion, have now declined to about $4.1 trillion, and the Fed is reducing its holdings by $50 billion per month.

But with markets uneasy, the central bank is expected to emphasize that future rate increases will depend on continued economic growth. In other words, the Fed could signal that while there is no reason to be worried about the economy at the moment, it is paying close attention to data that could signal economic weakening both in the United States and abroad.

Future signals

Financial markets are well-prepared for a rate hike. Attention instead is focused on what the central bank says about its plans for next year. Mr. Powell already has emphasized that the Fed is shifting to a new phase of monetary policy, in which it will offer less guidance about its plans.

Instead, the Fed will emphasize that economic developments will dictate the course of policy. If growth is strong, the Fed is likely to raise rates at least a few more times. If signs of faltering growth continue to emerge, the Fed could pause for a while to take the measure of the economy.

Most Fed officials have said that they want to return the Fed’s benchmark rate to a neutral level, meaning that the Fed would neither be stimulating nor discouraging economic activity.

The challenge is that no one knows precisely where that level sits. Mr. Powell said last month that the benchmark rate currently sits “just below” the bottom of the range that most Fed officials regard as plausible estimate of neutrality.

How many dots

Even as the Fed seeks to get out of the forecasting business, it is still planning to release a set of forecasts by the members of its policymaking committee, showing how many times they expect the central bank to raise rates next year.

In the last round of forecasts, published in September, most Fed officials predicted the central bank would raise rates three times in 2019. Shaving those predictions would underscore the Fed’s doubts about the economy’s trajectory.

The committee comprises the Fed’s board of governors and the presidents of the 12 regional reserve banks.

What about President Trump?

Mr. Trump has repeatedly warned the Fed to stop raising rates, saying it is going to snuff out the economic recovery and advising it to “feel the market.” Mr. Powell has so far brushed off any suggestion that the Fed might pay attention to the president’s admonitions but any signal that the Fed is slowing its pace of rate increases will undoubtedly raise questions about whether Mr. Trump’s campaign is working.

That said, while many economists think Mr. Trump’s attacks on the independent Fed have been ill-advised, there is a growing school of thought that a slowdown in rate increases may be warranted given signs of economic weakness in the United States and abroad.

How will markets react?

Markets have been fairly calm on Wednesday ahead of the meeting, a sharp contrast to earlier in the week, when investors sent stocks plunging on Monday and zigzagging again on Tuesday, before closing up slightly for the day.

With a rate increase already baked in for December, investors will be reacting most heavily to the projections for next year. If the Fed signals it is slowing down, expect markets to applaud.

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