Wall Street's main indexes ticked up on Wednesday, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision, while the Israel-Iran attacks entered the sixth day.
Investors will closely monitor Fed Chair Jerome Powell's comments to gauge how he plans to combat the risk of rising prices, which remains a dominant concern for the central bank. The Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged at its meeting, scheduled later in the day.
Ahead of the monetary policy decision, money market moves show traders are pricing in about 46 basis points of rate cuts by the end of 2025, with a 55% chance of a 25-bps rate cut in September, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.
Following strong monthly equity trading in May, the benchmark S&P 500 index, and the Nasdaq, were close to record peaks before the ongoing conflict in the Middle East made investors risk averse.
The S&P 500 index stood 2.5% below its record level, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq, opens new tab remained 3.3% lower.
Investors have been anxious over the possibility of a more direct U.S. military involvement in the Israel-Iran aerial war.
A source familiar with internal discussions said U.S. President Donald Trump and his team were considering a number of options, which included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear sites.
At 09:52 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, rose 73.93 points, or 0.18%, to 42,289.73, the S&P 500, gained 13.90 points, or 0.23%, to 5,996.62 and the Nasdaq Composite, gained 49.31 points, or 0.26%, to 19,571.01.
Source : Reuters
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