The US markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday, while the Dow industrials closed fractionally lower after the Federal Reserve policy meeting minutes indicated a reduction in the central bank’s economy-boosting balance sheet could begin soon, and technology stocks rallied amid a disappointing manufacturing report and decline in crude futures. Federal Reserve policymakers were increasingly split on the outlook for inflation and how it might affect the future pace of interest rate rises, according to the minutes of the Fed’s last policy meeting on June 13-14 released. The details of the meeting, at which the US central bank voted to raise interest rates, also showed that several officials wanted to announce a start to the process of reducing the Fed’s large portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities by the end of August but others wanted to wait until later in the year. The issue of when to begin reducing the Fed’s $4.2 trillion portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities and how it might affect deciding future rate rises also sparked debate. At the June meeting, the Fed gave a clear outline of its plan this year to reduce its portfolio but gave no precise timing. The shedding of the bonds and other securities, most of which were purchased in the wake of the 2007-2009 financial crisis, marks the final chapter in the central bank’s normalization of monetary policy.
On the economy front, US factory orders sank 0.8% in May following a smaller decline in April. Previously the US Census had said orders for durable goods fell by 1.1%. Inventories rose 0.2% for the 10th gain in the past 11 months. And shipments increased a revised 1% in May.
The Nasdaq gained 40.8 points or 0.67 percent to 6,150.86, S&P 500 edged higher by 3.53 points or 0.15 percent to 2,432.54, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.1 points or 0.01 percent to 21,478.17.