The U.S. Federal Reserve announced during Wednesday's U.S. stock trading session that it would keep the federal funds rate target range unchanged at 3.75% to 4%, in line with market expectations. Fed officials had raised rates by 0.25 percentage points at the 9月 meeting, the first rate hike since 2023. According to the CME FedWatch tool, ahead of Wednesday's policy meeting, futures markets priced in a nearly 93% probability of holding current rates unchanged.
All Four Major U.S. Indexes Close Higher
After the Fed announced its rate decision, U.S. stocks closed higher across the board on Wednesday. The S&P 500 rose 0.28% to close at 7743.98; the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.27% to 26549.85; the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 97.53 points, or 0.19%, to close at 52475.10; and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 1.75% to close at 11684. Meanwhile, Taifex night futures closed down 128 points, but remained above 47000. Investors continued to digest the Fed's latest rate decision while awaiting earnings reports from large technology stocks.
華許 Stresses Price Stability, Does Not Rule Out Further Hike
Chairman 華許 said at the press conference following the rate decision that, despite pausing rate hikes, the central bank continues to prioritize price stability, and noted that the overall employment situation remains quite positive. Franklin Templeton Institute Chief Investment Strategist Jeff Schulze said the information released that day did not rule out the possibility of another 25-basis-point hike before year-end, with the market's focus on the pace of tightening, while the Federal Open Market Committee appears to believe that gradually unwinding last year's rate cuts at a cautious, gradual pace is appropriate, a pace that historically has tended to favor risk assets.
Chip Stocks Lead Gains as Oracle Surges Over 10%
Chipmaker-related shares moved higher together, mainly boosted by SK海力士 reporting record quarterly profit, with SK海力士 ADR surging 13.3% on Wednesday's close. Micron Technology rose 5.86%, Arm Holdings rose 4.1%, Marvell Technology rose 3.32%, and AMD rose 3.24%. 台積電 ADR rose 0.62% to close at $439.51, its 4th consecutive trading day of gains. Software company Oracle surged 10.73% after releasing its financial forecast, with the company projecting revenue of 2250 billion dollars in fiscal 2030, representing 35% annual growth, and stating that additional fundraising from fiscal 2027 to fiscal 2030 would be limited to $20 billion.
Focus on Magnificent Seven Earnings and AI Investment Concerns
After the U.S. market close, investors will continue to watch artificial intelligence-related trading, with Magnificent Seven members Alphabet and Microsoft set to report their latest quarterly earnings. In recent weeks technology stocks have performed weakly, especially those closely tied to AI infrastructure investment, as the market has raised concerns about how AI-related investments are being funded, putting such technology stocks in focus.