THE NEW YORK STOCK MARKET ENDS UP STRONGLY
by Echo Wang and Devik Jain
(Archyde.com) – The New York Stock Exchange ended sharply higher on Wednesday following a rocky session as the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) announced a much-anticipated rate hike. interest rate of half a point, an unprecedented measure since 2000, to fight once morest inflation.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 2.81%, or 932.27 points, to 34,061.06 points.
The broader S&P-500 gained 124.69 points, or 2.99%, to 4,300.17 points.
The Nasdaq Composite advanced for its part by 401.10 points (3.19%) to 12,964.86 points.
After experiencing movements in both directions, the main indices on Wall Street stabilized and then climbed, sharply, with comments from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell at a press conference.
The S&P-500 recorded its strongest daily percentage gain since May 18, 2020.
In a statement released following its two-day monetary policy meeting, the Fed said it was raising its main interest rate by half a point and would begin shrinking its balance sheet in June, a tightening intended to strengthen the fight once morest soaring inflation.
“Clearly (the Fed) understands the need to counter rising prices,” said Greg Bassuk, managing director of AXS Investments in Port Chester, New York.
However, “even if the Fed is more aggressive with rate hikes, we are still grappling with geopolitical tensions, COVID-related issues as well as quarterly earnings all over the place,” he said. he adds. “So we still see volatility on the horizon.”
Investors closely followed Jerome Powell’s speech for possible new indications on the Fed’s future measures and their timing.
Wall Street has been weighed down recently by fears that the Fed’s more aggressive policy will hurt economic growth, disappointing quarterly results from high-growth companies, the conflict in Ukraine and health restrictions in the face of COVID-19. in China.
High-growth stocks, including tech giants, were the main victims of market rotation.
All of the eleven major sectors of the S&P-500 rose on Wednesday, especially the energy sector.
Bank stocks rose 3.5% as the yield on two-year US Treasuries hit a new high since November 2018.
Lyft tumbled 30% following reporting quarterly operating profit that fell short of expectations amid fears over its additional spending.
* The reminder of the session in Europe: [.EUFR]
* TO BE FOLLOWED ON THURSDAY:
(French version Jean Terzian)