Major Averages Manage To Close Modestly Higher

(RTTNews) - Stocks saw considerable volatility in reaction to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement before ending Wednesday's trading modestly higher. With the gains on the day, the major averages extended the upward move seen in the previous session.

The higher close on Wall Street came as traders reacted to some relatively dovish signals from the Federal Reserve reinforcing the view that the eventual increase in interest rates will be gradual.

While many of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves substantial strength was visible among gold stocks. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surged up by 2.4 percent after hitting a nearly six-month intraday low.

The strength that emerged among gold stocks came as the price of the precious metal moved higher in electronic trading, as the value of the U.S. dollar pulled back in reaction to the Fed announcement.

Utilities stocks also moved to the upside, resulting in a 1 percent gain by the Dow Jones Utilities Average. With the gain, the average climbed further off the eight-month closing low it set on Monday.

Commercial real estate, electronic storage, and tobacco stocks also saw some strength on the day, although buying interest was relatively subdued.

The major averages pulled back off their highs going into the close but managed to hold on to slim gains. The Dow edged up 31.26 points or 0.2 percent to 17,935.74, the Nasdaq rose 9.33 points or 0.2 percent to 5,064.88 and the S&P 500 crept up 4.15 points or 0.2 percent to 2,100.44.