Traders are treading cautiously in Wednesday’s session, seeking more clarity on the Federal Reserve’s stance with inflation reports exceeding expectations.
The forthcoming Federal Open Market Committee statement is anticipated to maintain interest rates where they are and possibly unveil a reduction in the Fed’s balance sheet runoff from $60 billion to $30 billion monthly. Fed Chair Jerome Powell‘s press conference is at 2:30 p.m. ET.
The S&P 500 inched 0.2% lower, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 underperformed, down 0.6%. Blue chips managed to avoid losses and showcased a 0.3% rise.
Aside from Fed policy, earnings remain a key driver of market sentiment, particularly as chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:NVDA) also experiencing a more than 5% decrease in its shares.
Data-wise, the ADP National Employment Report revealed a stronger-than-expected private jobs addition in April, ahead of the highly awaited official jobs report on Friday. The ISM Manufacturing Index surprisingly fell back into contraction territory, missing expectations.
Sentiment on the cryptocurrency market continued to remain fragile, with Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) sinking over 5%, on track for a two-day, 10% slump, the worst since November 2022.
Wednesday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs
| Major Indices | Price | 1-day %chg |
| Dow Jones | 37,940.89 | 0.3% |
| Russell 2000 | 1,972.88 | 0.0% |
| S&P 500 | 5,024.25 | -0.2% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 17,334.25 | -0.6% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:QQQ) fell 0.6% to $422.21, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Sector-wise, the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) was the major laggard, down 1.6%.
Wednesday’s Stock Movers
- Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ:SBUX) plummeted over 16% in reaction to its earnings report.
- Other companies reacting to earnings were Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:NCLH) down nearly 14%.
- Notable names reporting after the close are Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ZG).
Read now: April Jobs Report Preview: Bank Of America Anticipates Solid Payrolls Growth, Rising Wage Pressures
Illustration created using artificial intelligence via MidJourney.
