Wall Street closed flat on Wednesday, with little to no movement across sectors. Markets pared gains after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that inflation might go up soon based on President Trump’s tariff policies. One of the benchmark indexes closed in the green, one closed in red, while one remained virtually unchanged. The markets were closed on Thursday on account of the Juneteenth holiday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) slid 0.1%, or 44.1 points, to close at 42,171.66. Fifteen components of the 30-stock index ended in negative territory, while 15 ended in positive.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 25.2 points, or 0.1%, to close at 19,546.27.
The S&P 500 fell 1.85 points, remaining virtually unchanged, to close at 5,980.87. Six of the 11 broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the red. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE), the Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) and the Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI) declined 0.7%, 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively, while the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) advanced 0.3%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) increased 2.6% to 22.17. A total of 16.5 billion shares were traded on Wednesday, lower than the last 20-session average of 18 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners by a 1.28-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.39-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
Markets ended Wednesday with mixed results, shaped by the Fed’s policy announcement, where officials opted to hold interest rates steady while maintaining projections for two rate cuts later this year. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivered a cautious message, emphasizing persistent inflation pressures and the potential economic fallout from rising tariffs and energy costs. His remarks led traders to scale back expectations for immediate monetary easing, resulting in a slight uptick in Treasury yields and subdued enthusiasm in interest-sensitive sectors.
Investors remained wary of the potential economic consequences of Donald Trump’s newly proposed trade tariffs. Although these measures have yet to be implemented, Powell’s remarks highlighted their uncertain inflationary impact, reinforcing the Fed’s wait-and-see stance. As a result, markets remained in a holding pattern, caught between hopes for monetary easing and concerns over macroeconomic uncertainty. The day concluded with investors closely watching the intersection of policy, inflation and global risk.
The Middle East conflict continued to have an adverse impact. Although there was no direct escalation on the day, elevated oil prices driven by fears of regional instability kept inflation risks top of mind. Brent crude hovered around $76 per barrel during the session, contributing to broader inflation anxiety. Utilities, being a defensive sector, became the biggest winning sector of the day.
