US STOCKS-S&P 500 turns slightly higher after Fed statement

The S&P 500 reversed declines to trade barely higher in choppy trading on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said the U.S. economic recovery remained on track despite rising coronavirus cases and that higher inflation remained the result of "transitory factors." The Dow cut its declines while the Nasdaq added to gains.

The S&P 500 reversed declines to trade barely higher in choppy trading on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said the U.S. economic recovery remained on track despite rising coronavirus cases and that higher inflation remained the result of "transitory factors."

The Dow cut its declines while the Nasdaq added to gains. The Fed statement came at the conclusion of its latest two-day policy meeting. The Fed did not release any new economic projections, and it also kept its overnight benchmark interest rate near zero and left unchanged its bond-buying program.

"One of the things we might look at is the statement that the economy is making progress and being more than one meeting before the Fed decides when they're going to taper," said Paul Nolte, portfolio manager at Kingsview Asset Management in Chicago. "We're seeing a little bit of a pickup in equity markets and yields, but not anything to write home about."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 100.1 points, or 0.29%, to 34,958.42, the S&P 500 gained 1.77 points, or 0.04%, to 4,403.23 and the Nasdaq Composite added 93.37 points, or 0.64%, to 14,753.94. Helping the Nasdaq, shares of Google parent Alphabet Inc rose 3.7% to an all-time high as a surge in advertising spending helped it post record quarterly results.