New York (AFP)

Wall Street finished higher on Wednesday and took the S & P 500 to a new record, while the US central bank (Fed) has, unsurprisingly, lowered its rates and reported that it would now wait before making any new decision.

The index that represents the 500 largest companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange rose 0.33% to 3,046.77 points, a new level.

The leading index Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.43% to finish at 27,186.69 points and Nasdaq, with strong technological color, rose 0.33% to 8,303.98 points.

"The market players had exactly what they wanted (from the Fed) and were able, after two days of wait-and-see, to breathe a sigh of relief," according to Art Hogan of National Holdings.

As widely expected by investors, the Monetary Committee of the Fed has indeed decided to reduce by one quarter of a percentage point (0.25%) the rates on a daily basis, in a range of 1.50% to 1 75%. This is the third straight decline in three months.

But the Fed also decided to remove a key phrase from the statement that said the institution would "act appropriately to support the expansion."

The president of the institution also said at a press conference that there should be "a noticeable change" in the Fed's forecasts to adjust rates one way or the other again.

It would thus be necessary to witness a steady rise in inflation "before even considering raising rates," he said.

In the end, "the Fed reassured investors by saying that if it took a break in the rate cut, it also rejected the idea of ​​an impending rise," said Hogan.

The indicators of the day on the US economy were rather encouraging.

According to the Commerce Department's first estimate, US economic growth slowed slightly in the third quarter, but remained above expectations, with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) up 1.9% over a year.

The private sector in the United States has also created more jobs than expected in October, according to the monthly survey of the firm ADP business services published Wednesday, or 125,000 jobs in October after 93,000 in September.

Investors will monitor Friday the release of the official report on US employment as well as the ISM indicator on manufacturing activity.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year rate on US debt fell to 1.773%, against 1.839% on Tuesday at the close.

© 2019 AFP