Fed Rate Hike Sends Stocks Tumbling, Dollar Soars
The Federal Reserve announced its first rate hike in three years on Wednesday, raising the target range to 3.75%, 4.00%. Chair Kevin Warsh signaled a hawkish stance at the press conference, emphasizing that inflation risks have not improved.
The Dow plummeted 631 points, with the S&P 500 falling 0.45% and the Nasdaq essentially flat. The 10-year Treasury yield climbed back above 5%, while gold and silver tumbled in after-hours trading.
Despite a sharp reversal from earlier gains, the tech sector proved relatively resilient, with Intel surging 4% on reports of talks to build a US plant with SK Hynix. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 0.63%, with Nvidia advancing after software solutions company CoreWeave adopted its VERA RUBIN NVL72 system.