WALL STREET ENDS MIXED AS COCA-COLA GAINS AND TESLA DROPS – Investors parsed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s latest comments
Wall Street’s main indexes ended mixed as gains in Coca-Cola and Apple offset losses in Tesla, while investors parsed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s latest comments.
The U.S. central bank is in no rush to cut its short-term interest rate again given the economy is “strong overall,” with low unemployment and inflation still above the Fed’s 2% target, Powell said in opening remarks at a Senate Banking Committee hearing.
Investors were also on the lookout for any new tariff comments from U.S. President Donald Trump, a day after he substantially raised levies on imports of steel and aluminium and said there would be announcements over the next two days about reciprocal tariffs on all countries that impose duties on U.S. goods.
The S&P 500 gained 2.15 points, or 0.04%, to end at 6,068.59 points, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 70.41 points, or 0.36%, to 19,643.86. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123.40 points, or 0.28%, to 44,599.89.
Coca-Cola advanced after the beverage maker beat fourth-quarter revenue estimates, helped by higher prices and resilient demand for its sodas and juices.
Tesla fell a day after it was reported a consortium led by CEO Elon Musk offered $97 billion to buy the nonprofit that controls artificial intelligence startup OpenAI.
Powell’s Senate testimony is the first of two days of hearings on Capitol Hill. He is set to speak to the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.
January consumer price index data is scheduled to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET (1330 GMT) today, before Powell’s appearance.
