Stocks Ended Lower after Fed’s Policy Decision

U.S. stocks ended lower on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve confirmed it would continue to embark on tighter monetary policy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 106.93 points, or 0.40%, to 26,385.28. The S&P 500 lost 9.59 points, or 0.33%, to 2,905.97. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 17.10 points, or 0.21%, to 7,990.37.

Oil futures settled lower Wednesday after a U.S. government report revealed that domestic supplies of crude oil unexpectedly edged higher for the first time in six weeks. November West Texas crude gave up 71 cents to settle 1% lower at $71.57 a barrel. November Brent fell 53 cents, or nearly 076%, to end at $81.34 a barrel.

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday for the third time this year and signaled they will raise rates again in December. The Fed announced an increase in the target range for its benchmark interest rate of 25 basis points to 2%-2.25%.