In addition, upbeat quarterly reports from Microsoft Corp and Alphabet Inc provided further encouragement about about the earnings season.The Fed raised the benchmark overnight interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point.
Powell said in a news conference following the rate announcement that he did not believe the US economy is currently in a recession but that it is softening. “It was a calming statement coming on the heels of a day where you saw some earnings and revenues that were better than expectations, albeit expectations that were very tempered.”
Microsoft rose 6.7% after it forecast double-digit growth in revenue this fiscal year on demand for cloud computing services.