Dow Jones Stock Market News: Stocks Up Over 100 Points Wednesday
Stocks on the Dow Jones Stock Exchange pointed higher Wednesday as Wall Street looks forward to the Federal Reserve's last meeting.
"Traders are preparing for some good news from the Fed; it's the Fed show," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank.
Minutes from the late April meeting are expected at 2 p.m. EDT. The central bank has trimmed its monthly asset buying by $10 million for the fourth month in a row. Federal officials have said the economy is picking up and the labor market is improving.
"The Street will be watching for hints of the Fed's specifics about its exit strategy from QE," or quantitative easing, Jeffrey Saut, chief investment strategist at Raymond James, said in an emailed commentary.
Luxury jeweler Tiffany is up over 8 percent in mid-day trading after the company posted a quarterly profit that beat expectations.
Netflix is also up by over 3 percent. The company announced it will add more offerings to its streaming service to customers in Europe.
Lower interest rates are also attracting homeowners to refinance their current mortgages but that isn't attracting new potential buyers, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Dow Jones is up over 100 points Wednesday, hitting a 155 point jump as well. At 2 p.m. EDT, it was up 140 points.
Financial stocks in the S&P 500 are helping the index rise. It is up 0.6 percent or 11.19 points.
The U.S. dollar is up against the Euro. With increased confidence in the dollar and the U.S. economy, gold futures declined $4.60 to $1,290 an ounce.
With the healthy financial reports and numbers on Wall Street, investors are still remaining patient.
"People are less active," said Michael O'Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading Institutional Services. "They're not seeing this overwhelming opportunity to go and buy stocks, so they're remaining invested and participating, but I don't think they have the conviction to create new highs in the market."
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