The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 23,879.12 on Wednesday with a gain of 91.67 points or 0.39%. The S&P 500 closed at 2,584.96 for a gain of 10.55 points or 0.41%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 6,957.08 for a gain of 60.08 points or 0.87%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 19.86 for a loss of 0.61 points or -2.98%.
Wednesday's market movers
Stocks gained for a fourth day on Wednesday, led by tech stocks in the Nasdaq. The Federal Reserve's December meeting minutes showed reluctance from some Fed officials to raise rates, which coincides with a more dovish monetary policy plan in 2019. A more positive outlook on international trade was also a factor as reports showed some reconciliations in trade talks between the U.S. and China. Meanwhile, the government continued to remain partially shutdown. President Trump walked out of a meeting discussing the border plans and the House of Representatives' most recent funding bill includes an additional $12 billion
more for foreign aid but nothing for a border wall.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Applications Index increased 23.5%.
- The Treasury held an auction for 10-year notes at a rate of 2.728%.
- The Federal Open Market Committee released minutes from their December meeting, in which the Fed raised the federal funds rate to 2.25% to 2.50% from 2.00% to 2.25%.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Apple (AAPL, Financial) 1.80%
- Microsoft (MSFT, Financial) 1.32%
- Chevron (CVX, Financial) 1.24%
- Home Depot (HD, Financial) 1.16%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,438.81 for a gain of 12.25 points or 0.86%. The S&P 600 closed at 896.69 for a gain of 9.19 points or 1.04%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth TSM Index closed at 8,963.41 for a gain of 88.46 points or 1.00%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Value TSM Index closed at 9,083.25 for a gain of 60.57 points or 0.67%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1,747.43 for a gain of 15.80 points or 0.91%; the S&P 100 at 1,146.66 for a gain of 2.79 points or 0.24%; the Russell 3000 at 1,524.62 for a gain of 7.48 points or 0.49%; the Russell 1000 at 1,430.32 for a gain of 6.61 points or 0.46%; the Wilshire 5000 at 26,741.36 for a gain of 127.57 points or 0.48%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 657.75 for a gain of 0.45 points or 0.07%.
