Stocks Climb Wall Of Worry -- U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - U.S. stocks rose Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up for a fourth day despite political turmoil in Washington DC and the disintegration of the president's business advisory council.

President Donald Trump is facing backlash for his handling of white nationalist violence over the weekend, where he equivocated the actions of neo-Nazis with counter-protesters.

A number of CEOs quit the business board in response, and as other prepared to do so, the president and remaining companies called an end to the arrangement.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 25.88 points, or 0.1%, to end at 22,024.87, the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 12.10 points, or 0.2%, to close at 6,345.11. The S&P 500 rose 3.5 points, or 0.1%, to close at 2,468.11, as energy stocks tumbled on weak oil prices.

The Federal Reserve remains on track to unwind its $4.5 trillion balance sheet at an "upcoming" meeting, according to the minutes of the central bank's July monetary policy decision.

Policy makers also expect to raise their benchmark lending rate by a quarter percentage point one more time this year despite ongoing concerns about stubbornly tame inflation.

Some members want to be "patient" on raising interest rates, however, as they lowered their forecast for underlying inflation.

Housing starts fell 5.6% in July, but the news was overshadowed by yesterday's encouraging retail sales figures.

Target Corp. (TGT) rose 3.6% after the retailer reported an increase in same-store sales and lifted its full-year adjusted profit outlook.

Urban Outfitters (URBN) shares soared 17% on strong earnings.