New York Sep 20 (IANS) US stocks ended higher on Tuesday with Dow and Nasdaq closing at record highs as the Federal Reserve began a two-day monetary policy meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 39.45 points or 0.18 per cent to 22 370.80. The S&P 500 added 2.78 points or 0.11 per cent to 2 506.65 Xinhua news agency reported.
The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 6.68 points or 0.10 per cent to 6 461.32.
It was widely expected that the US central bank won t raise interest rates following the meeting but investors believe the Fed will announce the unwinding of its $4.5-trillion balance sheet.
Analysts said market will also be looking for clues of whether the Fed will raise rates in December. Market expectations for a December rate hike rose to 58.3 per cent on Tuesday.
Wall Street also kept an eye on the United Nations where US President Donald Trump gave a speech on Tuesday trying to rally members to confront threats like North Korea.0000
Earlier this month the UN Security Council unanimously imposed a ban on the Asian country s textile exports and capped its crude oil imports.
On the economic front US privately-owned housing starts in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1 180 000 beating market consensus the Commerce Department reported on Tuesday.
--IANS
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