New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange closed Wednesday close to balance, thanks to a resurgence of major indices late in the session, while the US Federal Reserve announced a further decline in key rates.

Wall Street's flagship index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, gained 0.13% to 27,147.08 points.

The Nasdaq, with strong technological coloration, yielded 0.11% to 8,177.39 points.

The broad S & P 500 index gained 0.03% at 3,006.73 points.

As most analysts expected, officials at the US Central Bank (Fed) announced a 25 basis point, or quarter of a percentage point, drop in their overnight rates at the end of the year. of a monetary policy meeting on Wednesday.

Interest rates, which were reduced for the second time in two months, are now in the range of 1.75% to 2%.

Slightly down before the Fed's announcement, the main indexes of the New York listing have widened their losses in the minutes following the release of the banking institution, but have resumed at the press conference of its president Jerome Powell.

"The market was a little hesitant, but Powell said the Fed has not changed its tone and continues to believe that the US economy is relatively strong," said Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities.

The Fed has slightly raised its growth forecast for the United States to 2.2% this year against 2.1% previously.

Mr. Powell, however, noted "two sources of uncertainty: slowing growth abroad and changing trade policy."

"Powell did a good job at the Q & A session, he was very consistent," Cardillo said.

For the evolution of rates in the future, the average of the projections of the members of the Fed (table of "dot plot") indicates that the Central Bank does not intend for the moment to go further in its rate cuts, neither end of 2019 nor next year.

The Monetary Committee, however, appeared very divided on Wednesday's decision, with three members voting against and seven against. This is the strongest opposition Powell has faced since taking over the Fed in early 2018.

"The other lesson of this vote is to see that there is no more consensus," said Gregori Volokhine of Meeschaert Financial Services.

In the bond market, the 10-year rate on US debt stood at 1.793% around 20:30 GMT against 1.801% the day before.

© 2019 AFP