WASHINGTON The Federal Reserve is expected to announce its second rate cut of the year on Oct. 29, despite a lack of clarity over the health of the U.S. economy due to the ongoing government shutdown. The U.S. central bank's second-to-last rate meeting of the year is taking place against the backdrop of a weeks-long standoff between Republicans and Democrats over healthcare subsidies, resulting in the ceased publication of almost all official data. Without these key insights into the U.S.