The market flipped between minor gains and losses throughout a fairly mundane Wednesday that the Federal Reserve failed to spice up.
This afternoon, the Fed released its minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee meeting in March, and officials expressed patience in keeping its easy monetary policy in place, believing it will be "some time" until its economic and price-stability goals are met.
"Without doubt, the March FOMC meeting minutes point to a desire to maintain a highly accommodative stance of monetary policy for the foreseeable future," says Bob Miller, BlackRock's head of Americas Fundamental Fixed Income. But he adds that "the March meeting also saw seven of 18 participants who did not think keeping the target policy range unchanged for three more years was appropriate.
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Be a smarter, better informed investor.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
"That's now becoming too many voices to squelch. … We think this debate will unfold further as the economy (and inflation) strengthen in the coming months."
There were individual pockets of motion across today's market – larger tech-related stocks such as Twitter (TWTR, +3.0%) and Nvidia (NVDA, +2.0%) headed higher, as did recovery plays such as retailer L Brands (LB, +3.6%) and cruise line operator Carnival (CCL, +1.4%).
But the broader indexes hardly moved. The Dow improved marginally to 33,446.26. The S&P 500 gained just 0.2% to 4,079, but that was enough to mark a new all-time high.
Other action in the stock market today:
- The Nasdaq Composite was off marginally to 13,688.
- The small-cap Russell 2000 had a much rougher go at things, dropping 1.6% to 2,223.
- U.S. crude oil futures headed higher again, up a modest 0.4% to $59.55 per barrel.
- Gold futures slipped a mere 0.1% to $1,741.60 per ounce.
- Bitcoin prices took a tumble, falling 3.6% to $56,136. (Bitcoin trades 24 hours a day; prices reported here are as of 4 p.m. each trading day.)
Which Stocks Should You Watch? Here's What a Machine Had to Say.
Over the past few years, we've frequently touted the potential of artificial intelligence (AI). This technology's ability to revolutionize everything, from industrial logistics to toasting your bread, has made the companies who enable artificial intelligence, or best utilize it, into many of the market's top returners.
Several AI-focused funds have come to life as a result, and some of today's most innovative companies have AI flowing through their business.
But artificial intelligence can do more than power profitable stocks – apparently, it can pick 'em, too.
Near the start of 2021, we explored an AI-powered analytics platform and some of its selections, and, since then, those stocks have clobbered the market. Naturally, we're curious whether this "robo-picker" can continue to outperform, so we've taken a fresh (and expanded) look at this system's top stocks to watch right now. You should, too.
Kyle Woodley was long NVDA as of this writing.
-
The Social Security Test Every Wealthy Retiree Must TakeWhen you work and collect Social Security benefits before your FRA, you are subject to the Retirement Earning Test that could result in a temporary reduction of your benefits.
-
I'm a Government Employee and Need to Get By Until the Shutdown Ends. What Can I Do?The second-longest shutdown in history is leaving many federal workers with bills due and no paycheck to cover them. Here's what you can do to get by.
-
Stocks Hit Fresh Highs Ahead of the Fed As Earnings Pump Optimism: Stock Market TodaySHW and UNH were two of the best Dow Jones stocks Tuesday, thanks to solid earnings reports, and MSFT closed with a $4 trillion market cap.
-
US-China Trade Hopes Send Stocks to New Highs: Stock Market TodayApple and Microsoft are on track to join Nvidia in the $4 trillion market cap club.
-
Dow Beats 334-Point Retreat on Tech Bite: Stock Market TodayInvestors, traders and speculators wonder whether this remains a Magnificent 7 market and how long this AI-driven bull run will last.
-
Trade Uncertainty Sparks Whipsaw Session: Stock Market TodayVolatility is making a cameo here in mid-October, a generally positive month marked by its historic stock market events.
-
Dow Adds 587 Points as Stocks Bounce: Stock Market TodayThe main indexes rebounded sharply Monday after President Trump took a calmer stance toward China.
-
Dow Dives 878 Points on Trump's China Warning: Stock Market TodayThe main indexes erased early gains after President Trump said China is becoming "hostile" and threatened to cancel a meeting with President Xi.
-
S&P 500 Hits New Highs as Rally Resumes: Stock Market TodayTech stocks were the biggest gainers on Wall Street today, with Nvidia and Dell making notable moves.
-
Rally Fades on Mixed AI Revolution News: Stock Market TodayAll three main U.S. equity indexes opened higher but closed lower as a seven-session winning streak for the S&P 500 came to an end.
