S&P 500 ekes out gain in choppy trade after Fed holds steady
U.S. stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday in a choppy session...
U.S. stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday in a choppy session that saw the Fed leave rates steady in June while penciling in another 50 basis points of potential hikes later this year. The Dow Jones Industrial AverageDJIA, -0.68% shed about 231 points, or 0.7%, ending near 33,980, according to preliminary FactSet data, or well off the session’s low of 33,783. The S&P 500 index SPX, +0.08% added about 3 points, or 0.1% and the Nasdaq CompositeIndex COMP, +0.39% closed 0.4% higher.
Fed holds rates steady, pausing after 10 straight hikes
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided against...
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided against what would have been an 11th consecutive interest rate increase as it measures what the impacts have been from the previous 10. The decision left the Fed’s key borrowing rate in a target range of 5%-5.25%.
But the decision by the Federal Open Market Committee to hold off on a hike at this meeting came with a projection that another two quarter percentage point moves are on the way before the end of the year.
Markets had widely been anticipating the Fed to “skip” this meeting – officials generally prefer the term to a “pause” that infers a longer-range plan to keep rates where they are. The expectation leaned heavily against an increase after policymakers, particularly Powell and Vice Chair Philip Jefferson, had indicated that some change in approach could be in order.
Hunt Energy, Bill Gates Help Fund Solar Company CubicPV
Dallas-based Hunt Energy Enterprises and ...
Dallas-based Hunt Energy Enterprisesand Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a clean energy fund founded by Bill Gates, are among contributors in a Massachusetts solar power company that has raised more than $100 million, according to a June 13 news release.
CubicPV, which also has an office in Dallas, raised equity commitments to advance solar power work, including a U.S. factory.
CubicPVsaid $33 million has been made available immediately. The second round of funding is tied to project milestones in CubicPV’seffort to develop and produce silicon wafers, an important component of solar panels. The company’s goal is to build 10 gigawatts of wafer production in the U.S. CubicPV, according to the news release.
The Las Vegas Golden Knights romped to their first Stanley Cup trophy just six years after being formed. The Florida Panthers’ defeat means that South FL teams went 0–2 in the championship series—as the Miami Heat lost to the Denver Nuggets in the NBA final.
Energy is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Cheaper...
Energy is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Cheaper energy played a major role in pulling inflation down to 4% last month from 4.9% in April, per Axios. Gas prices plunged almost 20% from last year, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent fuel costs to the moon, while broader energy prices fell nearly 12%.
Food prices are up.The cost of food ticked up 0.2% in May from April after staying flat in the previous two months, showing how inflation has persisted on grocery store shelves. But not all aisles are created equal—the price of eggs dropped nearly 14% from April (the biggest one-month drop since 1951), while fruit and veggie prices rose 1.3%.
More than anything else, rent is propping up inflation. Shelter costs are the largest category in the CPI report, and they’re still on the upward march, climbing 8.7% from a year earlier. The good news: Economists say this government data doesn’t reflect on-the-ground information, such as reports of softening rent by Zillow and Apartment List. Shelter costs in the CPI are expected to decline during the second half of the year.
