US stocks end mixed as Fed rate cut sparks volatility
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Traders working on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, during morning trading, on Sept 17.
PHOTO: AFP
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NEW YORK - Wall Street stocks finished mixed after the Federal Reserve announced its first interest rate cut of 2025
The moves corresponded to market expectations and follow recent economic reports showing weaker job growth that Fed chairman Jerome Powell said justified a greater focus on the Fed’s labour market mandate compared with inflation.
US stocks were choppy after the decision, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending up 0.6 per cent at 46,018.32.
The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.1 per cent to 6,600.35, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.3 per cent to 22,261.33.
“Everything landed right in the middle of the fairway,” said B. Riley Wealth Management’s Mr Art Hogan, noting that equity markets had risen in anticipation of the Sept 17 moves.
Based on the projections released on Sept 17, Mr Hogan said Fed policy makers appeared to be close to evenly split between those who expect at least two interest rate cuts later this year and those who anticipate one or fewer.
Mr Powell reiterated that additional interest rate actions would depend on upcoming economic data.
Among individual companies, Nvidia fell 2.6 per cent following a report that major Chinese tech companies can no longer buy the company’s semiconductor chips.
Lyft jumped 13.1 per cent as it announced a plan with Alphabet’s Waymo to launch driverless ride-hailing services in Nashville in 2026. Alphabet dipped 0.6 per cent. AFP
