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U.S. stocks rally ahead of Fed minutes

Xinhua, November 19, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks traded higher in the morning session on Wednesday, as investors awaited the release of minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest meeting.

By noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 146.84 points, or 0.84 percent, to 17,636.34. The S&P 500 was up 17.46 points, or 0.85 percent, to 2,067.90. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 44.92 points, or 0.90 percent, to 5,030.93.

Traders will look for more hints on the timing of an interest rate hike by the U.S. central bank. Wall Street widely expected the Fed to raise interest rates at its December meeting.

The minutes, due to be released this afternoon, "may provide insight into the discussion behind the change, clarifying the intended message," said Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, in a note.

On the economic front, U.S. privately-owned housing starts in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.06 million, below market estimates, said the Commerce Department Wednesday.

In corporate news, shares of Apple rose over 3 percent at midday Wednesday after Goldman Sachs issued a bullish note on the iPhone maker.

Target announced better-than-expected quarterly earnings Wednesday before the opening bell. The retail giant said third quarter adjusted earnings per share of 86 cents was above the midpoint of the company's guidance of 79 cents to 89 cents.

U.S. stocks closed narrowly mixed after volatile trading Tuesday, as investors digested a batch of economic reports. Endit