Investing.com -- The S&P 500 closed higher Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the third time this year, but signaled that the bar for further easing would be higher stoking uncertainty about the path ahead.
At 4:00 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 497 points, or 1.1%, the S&P 500 index 0.7%, and the NASDAQ Composite gained 0.3%.
Fed’s cuts rates for third time, but divisions grow
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday lowered interest rates by 25 basis points for the third time this year, to a range of 3.5% to 3.75%.
At the press conference that following the rate decision, Fed chairman Jerome Powell said that the three cuts delivered this year have now pushed rates in a "range of plausible estimates of the neutral rate and leave it well positioned to determine the extent of further changes to rates based on incoming economic data."
In a sign of growing divisions, there were three dissents against the decision, with two in favor of pausing, and one preferring to cut by 50 basis points.
Trump to begin final round of Fed interviews - WSJ
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is aiming to begin the final round of interviews for the next Fed Chair in the coming days, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Citing senior administration officials, the WSJ said Trump and some of his aides are scheduled to interview former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh on Wednesday, and meet with other candidates soon.
One of those will be Kevin Hassett, the White House economic adviser many reports have described as the frontrunner to replace Powell when his term at the helm of the Fed ends next year.
Oracle, Adobe earnings awaited
Beyond the Fed meeting, focus this week is also on earnings from cloud and chipmaking majors Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) after Wednesday’s close, for more cues on the AI trade.
Fueled by a partnership with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, Oracle has transformed its image this year from a smaller player in the cloud business to an essential provider of the rented computing power needed to underpin AI models.
Adobe Systems (NASDAQ:ADBE) is also due to report its latest quarterly earnings after the closing bell on Wall Street.
Shares of the firm behind creative products like Photoshop and Acrobat have slumped by more than 21% so far this year, easily underperforming the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.
Elsewhere, AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) stock fell after the drone maker missed second-quarter earnings expectations and cut its outlook, while Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) stock slumped after the restaurant chain cut its sales outlook for its fiscal year, citing “unique and ongoing headwinds" as it struggles to recover from a poorly-received rebrand.
On the flip side, Chewy Inc (NYSE:CHWY) was slightly lower after the online pet retailer reported third-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, demonstrating strong profitability growth alongside solid revenue gains.
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Peter Nurse, Ambar Warrick contributed to this article
