Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Aug 12, 2025

US stocks rise after Fed minutes show most policy makers are in favor of easing up on rate hikes

US stocks rise after Fed minutes show most policy makers are in favor of easing up on rate hikes

Stocks advanced for a second straight session with signs the Fed may begin cutting down on hefty rate increases as early as December.

US stocks overcame earlier losses to finish higher Wednesday, as minutes from the Federal Reserve's meeting this month indicated policymakers are prepared to cut the size of rate hikes aimed at chopping down inflation.

Wall Street's major indexes landed a second consecutive day of gains. The S&P 500 stretched further into the 4,000 level after closing above that mark on Tuesday for the first time since September. Nine of the index's 11 sectors gained ground, led by the consumer discretionary group.

A "substantial majority of participants judged that a slowing in the pace of increase would likely soon be appropriate," minutes of this month's Fed meeting released Wednesday afternoon said. The central bank has pushed up the fed funds rate by 75 basis points at four straight meetings.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Wednesday:

*  S&P 500: 4,027.26, up 0.59%

*  Dow Jones Industrial Average: 34,194.06, up 0.28% (95.96 points)

*  Nasdaq Composite: 11,285.32, up 0.99%

Fed speakers have been telegraphing since the November meeting they are heading toward easing the pace of its aggressive campaign, and a rate increase of 50 basis points may be in store for December, Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial, wrote in a note.

"It doesn't mean that the Fed reaches its terminal rate in December – rather it could be a lower-for-longer path as the Fed assesses the lagged effect of the cumulative rates on the broader economy. While this doesn't represent the 'pivot' that the market has on its holiday wish list, it does represent an important transition in monetary policy," she said.

Stocks were mixed earlier Wednesday after the Labor Department said weekly jobless claims rose by 17,000 to 240,000. That was more than expected and marked the highest number of claims since August.

Among individual stocks, Deere shares climbed after the heavy equipment maker boosted its 2023 profit outlook to $8 billion to $8.5 billion. Nordstrom shares fell after the upscale retailer cut its 2022 per-share earnings outlook to a range of $2.13 to $2.43. Credit Suisse's US-listed shares fell after the bank under restructuring warned of a fourth-quarter loss of up to 1.5 billion Swiss francs ($1.6 billion).

Equity trading will be closed Thursday for Thanksgiving Day and end early on Friday, at 1 p.m. Eastern.

Here's what else is happening today:

*  Oil prices fell Wednesday following reports the European Union is thinking about capping Russian oil prices at $65-$70 a barrel.

*  An extremely rare signal flashed in the stock market on Tuesday, indicating big gains ahead for equities.

Elon Musk's focus on Twitter's turnaround creates three factors that put Tesla stock at risk, said Wedbush.

*  Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has slashed its stake in Chinese electric-vehicle make BYD - and has pulled in about $1.2 billion profit on the shares sold.

*  A lawyer for FTX said a substantial amount of assets belonging to the bankrupt crypto exchange were either missing or stolen.

*  Meanwhile, the court hearing FTX's bankruptcy petition was told the company spent around $300 million buying houses for senior executives in the Bahamas.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:


*  West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2.7% to $78.73 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 4% to $84.87.

*  Gold picked up 0.7% to $1,752.70 per ounce.

*  The 10-year Treasury yield fell 11 basis points to 3.70%.

*  Bitcoin rose 2% to $16,455.05.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Proposes Land Concessions to End Ukraine War
New Road Safety Measures Proposed in the UK: Focus on Eye Tests and Stricter Drink-Driving Limits
Viktor Orbán Criticizes EU's Financial Support for Ukraine Amid Economic Concerns
South Korea's Military Shrinks by 20% Amid Declining Birthrate
US Postal Service Targets Unregulated Vape Distributors in Crackdown
Duluth International Airport Running on Tech Older Than Your Grandmother's Vinyl Player
RFK Jr. Announces HHS Investigation into Big Pharma Incentives to Doctors
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Security flaws in a carmaker’s web portal let one hacker remotely unlock cars from anywhere
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
×