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U.S. stocks rise amid Fed Beige Book

Xinhua, June 2, 2016 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks ended slightly higher Wednesday, as investors assessed the Federal Reserve's Beige Book amid economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 2.47 points, or 0.01 percent, to 17,789.67. The S&P 500 increased 2.37 points, or 0.11 percent, to 2,099.33. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 4.20 points, or 0.08 percent, to 4,952.25.

U.S. economy reported modest growth in April through mid-May, and the tight labor market is pushing up wage and price pressures, according to the Fed's latest Beige Book released Wednesday afternoon.

The Beige Book, which gauges its 12 districts' economy, showed that most districts reported modest economic growth in April and mid-May, supported by growth in consumer spending and real estate activities.

Fed officials have said that they expect to raise interest rates in the coming months, if the economy continues to improve. The central bank's policy making Federal Open market Committee is to meet on June 14 to 15 to discuss whether to raise rate or not.

The uncertainty over the timing of a next rate hike has weighed on market sentiment recently.

On the economic front, the May purchasing managers' index registered 51.3 percent, an increase of 0.5 percentage point from the April reading of 50.8 percent, according to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Wednesday.

"A boost to the ISM manufacturing index is a welcome sign after several regional manufacturing indicators fell in May. It would have been more encouraging still if production, orders or employment had improved," said Jay Morelock, an economist at FTN Financial.

Meanwhile, U.S. construction spending during April 2016 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,133.9 billion U.S. dollars, 1.8 percent below the revised March estimate, reported the Commerce Department Wednesday. Endit