The S&P 500 inched up 0.1% on Wednesday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added nearly 100 points and the Nasdaq Composite was little changed, as investors delivered a mixed response to the latest FOMC decision. As widely anticipated, the Federal Reserve left its benchmark interest rate unchanged, though two policymakers dissented in favor of a 25 bps increase. The central bank refrained from offering explicit forward guidance, and futures markets continued to imply nearly a 90% probability of a rate hike in December, roughly unchanged from prior to the announcement.
Corporate earnings remained at the forefront of market attention. Microsoft slipped 0.8% and Alphabet gained 1.2% ahead of their quarterly results, due after the closing bell. Alphabet also drew support from reports that OpenAI plans to purchase AI computing chips from Google. Record quarterly profits at South Korea’s SK Hynix lifted select semiconductor names, including Micron Technology (+4.2%) and AMD (+1.6%). By contrast, Apple declined 0.5% despite unveiling a revamped MacBook Pro with a touchscreen, while Meta lost 1.6% and Tesla fell 1.4%.
