The Federal Reserve left rates unchanged on Wednesday, leading to a positive trading day for U.S. stocks. The Dow rose 0.91% to 39,467.76, the NASDAQ increased by 1.08% to 16,341.42, and the S&P 500 gained 0.78% to 5,218.70.
Consumer discretionary shares saw a 1.3% increase, while health care shares fell by 0.4% during trading on Wednesday. The Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates steady between 5.25% and 5.5% was widely expected by investors. The Fed also confirmed intentions to lower the cost of money in the coming months.
In terms of individual stock movements, ETAO International Co., Ltd. saw a significant increase of 87% to $0.2670 after announcing a reverse stock split. XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. surged by 90% to $1.96 following the announcement of plans to acquire The Social Proxy. TruGolf Holdings, Inc. also experienced a gain of 48% to $1.70 after announcing an expanded AI technology licensing agreement with mlSpatial.
On the downside, Lifecore Biomedical, Inc. shares dropped 32% to $4.9050 after concluding its strategic evaluation process and announcing management succession and board changes. Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. saw a 16% decrease to $4.47 after pricing its $75 million underwritten public offering of 16,666,667 common shares at $4.50 per share. Signet Jewelers Limited fell by 10% to $92.17 after reporting worse-than-expected fourth-quarter sales and issuing weak FY25 guidance.
In commodity news, oil traded down 2% to $81.84, while gold traded up 1.3% at $2,187.90. Silver rose by 2.6% to $25.80, and copper increased by 0.4% to $4.0890 on Wednesday.
European shares closed mixed, with the eurozone’s STOXX 600 falling 0.05%, London’s FTSE 100 slipping 0.01%, and Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rising 0.48%. Asian markets closed higher, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rising 0.08%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index gaining 0.55%, and India’s S&P BSE Sensex increasing by 0.1%.
Overall, the Federal Reserve’s decision to leave rates unchanged had a positive impact on U.S. stocks, leading to gains in major indices and individual stocks. Investors will continue to monitor economic indicators and central bank decisions for future market movements.
