Major US stock indices edged higher on Wednesday as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement scheduled for later in the day.
At around 10:15 a.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 gained 0.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.5%. The Nasdaq Composite also rose 0.2%.
Market participants are closely watching the Fed’s first monetary policy decision under Chair Kevin Warsh, which is due at 2:00 p.m. ET.
The central bank is broadly expected to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged in the 3.50%-3.75% range as officials continue to assess inflation risks stemming from elevated oil prices amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
On the economic front, data released on Wednesday showed U.S. retailers posted stronger-than-expected revenue growth in May, suggesting consumer spending remains resilient and could help sustain economic momentum. However, persistent inflation continues to weigh on household sentiment, leaving many Americans concerned about their financial outlook.
In geopolitical news, Iran is expected to move quickly to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once a formal agreement is finalized. The move would enable oil tankers to resume transporting crude from the Persian Gulf to global markets.
Meanwhile, in the bond market, the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note held steady at 4.43%, unchanged from late Tuesday levels.
Key Stock Movers
Shares of semiconductor companies rallied, with Broadcom rising 4.4% and Applied Materials surging 8.6%.
Software stocks remained under pressure, as Adobe, Salesforce and Atlassian declined between 1.2% and 2.3%.
Jabil gained 5.2% after reporting quarterly earnings and revenue that exceeded analysts’ expectations.
SpaceX shares, meanwhile, reversed earlier gains and slipped 2.3%.
Furniture maker La-Z-Boy jumped 21.4% after posting better-than-anticipated quarterly profit and sales figures.
Oil Prices
Crude oil prices edged higher on Wednesday after suffering sharp declines in the previous session, as optimism surrounding a tentative U.S.-Iran agreement raised hopes for the restoration of global oil supplies.
Brent crude futures were up 93 cents, or around 1.2%, to $79.89 a barrel at 1308 GMT, and US West Texas Intermediate gained 79 cents, or 1%, to $76.84. Both contracts hit their lowest since early March earlier in the session.
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that a memorandum of understanding with Iran was not final, and that he could resume a bombing campaign if he did not like it or if Iran didn’t “behave”.
“(There’s) still a bit of uncertainty in terms of the US situation … so it … makes sense for oil to bounce back from these levels after staging what has been quite a sharp decline in the last few days,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index and FOREX.com.
