US STOCKS-Wall St closes higher after Fed vows more support for the virus-battered economy

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By Sinéad Carew
New York, July 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks added to gains on
Wednesday after the Federal Reserve repeated a pledge to use its
"full range of tools" to support the economy but cautioned that
the outlook "will depend significantly on the course of the
virus."
At the end of its two-day policy meeting the Fed said it
will keep its interest rate target range until it is confident
the economy has weathered the coronavirus pandemic and is on
track for maximum employment and price stability goals.
While strategists said they found no surprising decisions
after the meeting, many pointed out that the Fed's focus on the
virus highlighted the uncertainties it is facing.
"The Fed is putting health again front and center in its
statement, which is impactful and meaningful, especially when
we're waiting on a bipartisan agreement on the fifth round of
the CARES Act. It's a bit ominous, to be frank," said Nela
Richardson, investment strategist at St. Louis-based Edward
Jones.
But Richardson noted the "commitment to do whatever it takes
to get the economy going again" and a recognition the economy
has improved and "come up from the bottom."
And with Fed confirmation of an extraordinarily uncertain
path, "investors can feel certain that monetary stimulus is
going to remain accommodative for the foreseeable future," said
Shawn Snyder, head of investment strategy at Citi Personal
Wealth Management.
Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
162.69 points, or 0.62%, to 26,541.97, the S&P 500 .SPX gained
40.16 points, or 1.25%, to 3,258.6 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 140.85 points, or 1.35%, to 10,542.94.
Wall Street's major indexes were already higher before the
Fed commentary as investors anticipated earnings reports due on
Thursday from Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O , Facebook Inc FB.O ,
Apple Inc AAPL.O and Alphabet's Google GOOGL.O .
These companies were among the biggest boosts for Nasdaq
even as the chief executives of all four companies also faced
jabs from lawmakers at a congressional hearing on antitrust
issues. "You'll often see an uptick in those shares ahead of
earnings and if they disappoint then they tend to sell off,"
said Citi's Snyder.
Investors were also focused on contentious negotiations in
Washington around what should go into government's next
coronavirus relief plan. Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD.O shares rose after the
chipmaker raised its full-year revenue forecast and boosted the
Philadelphia chip index .SOX .
Starbucks Corp SBUX.O climbed after the coffee chain said
business was "steadily recovering" worldwide and it would report
a profit in the current quarter. Of the S&P 500 firms that have reported results, 79.1% have
surpassed a low bar of quarterly profit expectations, according
to Refinitiv IBES data.
Recent data pointed to a possible slowdown in business and
hiring as several U.S. states reimposed restrictions after a
spike in COVID-19 infections, while deaths in the country caused
by the disease surpassed 150,000 on Wednesday. Boeing Co BA.N shares slipped after it slashed production
on its widebody programs and reported a bigger-than-expected
loss due to the fallout from the pandemic.