The Nasdaq barely held onto a small gain Tuesday as traders braced for what could turn out to be a pivotal Federal Reserve meeting.
The Fed is widely expected to cut interest rates by a quarter point on Wednesday, but some economists caution that the Fed may not cut rates at all — and could signal that its rate cut campaign that began last summer is over. Stock News Markets Mixed Ahead of Fed Meeting::
Tech shares received a boost from positive Oracle earnings, but the Dow and S&P rose 2.7% to 4,078.60, Hong Kongs Hang Seng index lost 0.45% to 21,705.56, and
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With inflation and the weak dollar growing concerns — and both problems exacerbated by rate cuts — observers generally agree that the Fed could at least signal a break from further rate cuts in its policy statement tomorrow.
Facing that uncertainty — and first-quarter GDP numbers in the morning — stocks once again made little headway on Tuesday. Market Insider/Wednesday Look Ahead - Market Insider with Patti Domm ::
by the markets ability to hang on in the face of bad consumer data and Fed speakers include Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans who speaks
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Yahoo was a big gainer, up more than 3% on reports that Microsoft could launch a proxy bid to acquire Yahoo as soon as Wednesday.
Corning was another standout, rising more than 3% on better than expected results and guidance, and Microchip was another earnings winner.
Rogers Communications climbed 4% on plans to bring Apple's iPhone to Canada. Apple rose on the news, but Research In Motion gained even more despite the new competition in its backyard.
Comscore jumped 12% on an upgrade. The company reports results on Thursday and has seen volatile swings lately.
Digi and TheStreet.com fell on their results.
The Nasdaq added 1 to 2426, the S&P lost 5 to 1390, and the Dow shed 40 to 12,831. Volume declined to 3.75 billion shares on the NYSE, and 1.78 billion on the Nasdaq. Decliners led by a 19-13 margin on the NYSE, and by a 16-11 margin on the Nasdaq. Upside volume was 41% on the NYSE, and 57% on the Nasdaq. New highs-new lows were 34-77 on the NYSE, and 50-94 on the Nasdaq.
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 Stocks Pause Ahead of Fed Meeting
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Techs Hang on Ahead of Fed