S&P 500, NASDAQ each gain 0.3%

Oracle jumps 10.73%; chipmakers rally

A street sign pointing to Wall Street stands outside the New York Stock Exchange. Wall Street analysts expect US Treasury yields to remain elevated at around 5% through 2029. [Reuters]
A street sign pointing to Wall Street stands outside the New York Stock Exchange. Wall Street analysts expect US Treasury yields to remain elevated at around 5% through 2029. [Reuters]

All three major US stock indexes rose Wednesday (local time), extending their winning streak to three consecutive trading sessions. Investor sentiment improved after the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady and signaled caution about a further rate increase in December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 97.53 points, or 0.19 percent, at 52,475.10 on the New York Stock Exchange. The S&P 500 gained 21.38 points, or 0.28 percent, to finish at 7,743.98, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite rose 72.04 points, or 0.27 percent, to close at 26,549.85.

The Fed's decision to hold its benchmark interest rate at 3.75 to 4.00 percent at its regular Federal Open Market Committee meeting drove the market higher. The decision matched market expectations, and reduced uncertainty over the future course of monetary policy helped restore investor confidence.

Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said at a post-meeting press conference that the September rate increase had performed in line with expectations, noting that financial conditions had tightened for some businesses and households. Warsh acknowledged that the US economy continued to grow at a solid pace but pointed to still-elevated inflation and reaffirmed the 2 percent inflation target.

The Fed offered no clear signal on whether it would raise rates again in December — the question markets had been watching most closely. Expectations that the Fed would monitor economic data before deciding on any further tightening underpinned investor sentiment.

"The Fed signaled it is prepared to be patient for now, as financial conditions are evolving as expected," said Luis Alvarado, a strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute. "But that patience should not translate into complacency."

Ian Lyngen, a strategist at BMO Capital Markets, said the biggest shift in the Fed's announcement was not the policy rate itself but the implied timeline for future decisions. "The assessment that the September rate hike is working suggests additional increases beyond December may not be necessary," Lyngen said.

Among individual stocks, Oracle surged 10.73 percent after laying out a long-term outlook targeting $225 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2030, implying an average annual sales growth rate of 35 percent. The aggressive growth target fueled a rally in the stock.

AI and semiconductor stocks also advanced broadly. SK hynix's ADR jumped 13.30 percent after the company reported record earnings Wednesday. US memory chipmaker Micron rose 5.86 percent, while Arm Holdings gained 4.10 percent and Marvell Technology closed up 3.32 percent.


moon@heraldcorp.com