U.S. stocks traded lower toward the end of trading, with the Nasdaq Composite falling around 1.5% on Wednesday.
The Dow traded down 0.21% to 38,384.83 while the NASDAQ fell 1.53% to 15,272.34. The S&P 500 also fell, dropping, 1.02% to 4,874.63.
Market Sector Performance
Real estate shares rose by 0.7% on Wednesday.
In trading on Wednesday, communication services shares fell by 3.3%.
Federal Reserve’s Decision
The Federal Reserve maintained interest rates between 5.25% and 5.5% Wednesday during its first meeting of 2024, aligning with market predictions.
Stock Movement
Ashland Inc. ASH shares shot up 17% to $94.34 after the company reported mixed first-quarter financial results and issued guidance.
Shares of Minim, Inc. MINM got a boost, surging 65% to $4.18. David E. Lazar disclosed a 51% active stake in Minim Inc.
Equities Trading DOWN
Nuvve Holding Corp. NVVE shares dropped 59% to $1.37. Nuvve announced pricing of $9.6 million underwritten public offering of 4.8 million shares of common stock at $2.00 per share.
Shares of New York Community Bancorp, Inc. NYCB were down 36% to $6.59 after the company reported worse-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results and reduced its quarterly dividend.
Commodities Update
In commodity news, oil traded down 2.6% to $75.78 while gold traded up 0.8% at $2,068.10.
Silver traded down 0.1% to $23.20 on Wednesday while copper fell 0.3% to $3.90.
Global Market Performance
European shares were mixed today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.01%, London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.47% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 0.38% The German DAX fell 0.40% French CAC 40 fell 0.27% while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index climbed 0.40%.
Asia Pacific Markets
Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 gaining 0.61%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index falling 1.39% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index dipping 1.48%. India’s S&P BSE Sensex, meanwhile, rose 0.86%.
Key Economic Indicators
Private businesses in the U.S. added 107,000 workers in January, compared to a revised 158,000 gain in December and versus market estimates of 145,000.
Compensation costs for civilian workers in the U.S. rose by 0.9% during the final quarter of 2023, compared to a 1.1% increase in the prior three-month period.
U.S. crude inventories increased 1.234 million barrels last week, compared to market expectations for a decline of 0.217 million barrels.
