NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street pared earlier losses and the U.S. Treasury yield curve flattened on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates, as expected.

At the conclusion of its two-day monetary policy meeting, the Fed cut key interest rates for the third time this year, as it eyes uncertainties stemming from the protracted trade war and assesses the strength of the longest-ever period of economic expansion in U.S. history.

Earlier in the session, a spate of mixed corporate earnings and a decline in the U.S. GDP growth rate kept investors cautious. Market participants will scrutinize Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks later in the session for clues regarding the way ahead for the central bank’s economic policy.

The Commerce Department’s advance reading of third-quarter GDP USGDPA=ECI showed the U.S. economy expanded at a 1.9% annual rate, down from 2% in the second quarter but beating the 1.6% growth rate analysts expected.

“The market’s not doing much right now. It’s trying to assess what the Fed said,” said Robert Pavlik, chief investment strategist, senior portfolio manager at SlateStone Wealth LLC in New York. “It’s left the markets in a bit of a black hole as it doesn’t know what the next move will be.”

Investors now look to Fed Chair Powell’s statement expected shortly.

“(Powell will be) trying to thread a needle and he has to be careful as to how he answers the questions,” Pavlik added. “It’ll be fairly  muted.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 7.98 points, or 0.03%, to 27,079.4, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 2.62 points, or 0.09%, to 3,034.27 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 9.14 points, or 0.11%, to 8,267.71.

European shares inched lower on bank earnings and doubts over an interim U.S.-China trade deal.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.08% and MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS shed 0.10%.

Emerging market stocks lost 0.38%. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS closed 0.3% lower, while Japan’s Nikkei .N225 lost 0.57%.

The U.S. Treasury yield curve flattened following the Fed’s announcement.

Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR last rose 7/32 in price to yield 1.8103%, from 1.835% late Tuesday.

The 30-year bond US30YT=RR last rose 30/32 in price to yield 2.287%, from 2.331% late Tuesday.

The dollar was nominally higher against a basket of major world currencies.

The dollar index .DXY rose 0.04%, with the euro EUR= up 0.03% to $1.1113.

The Japanese yen weakened 0.10% versus the greenback at 109.00 per dollar, while Sterling GBP= was last trading at $1.2882, up 0.13% on the day.

Oil prices fell on worries about a possible delay in resolving the U.S.-China trade war, which has hurt global oil demand.

U.S. crude CLcv1 fell 0.79% to $55.10 per barrel and Brent LCOcv1 was last at $60.31, down 1.5% on the day.

Gold prices edged lower, reversing earlier gains.

Spot gold XAU= dropped 0.1% to $1,486.52 an ounce.

Copper CMCU3 lost 0.72% to $5,885.00 a tonne.

Source: Read Full Article