US stocks clawed their way into the black on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve left rates on hold and was unable to give a clear signal for when the cost of credit will rise.
The broad-based S&P 500 ended up 0.2% at 2,095, while the S&P Midcap 400 was up 0.4% at 1,488 and the S&P Smallcap 600 up 0.4% at 708. The wider small-cap Russell 2000 was up 0.3% at 1,154.
Oil prices helped buoy markets, with the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate firming up into the New York close, up 3% at $45.34.
The Fed's actions were enough to give markets some respite from another hike soon, but the lack of clarity about the global economy also means it will weigh on the market.
Earlier in the session, major tickers were sunk by the overnight poorer-than-expected Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) quarterly earnings report.
Midsession
Meanwhile, the S&P Smallcap 600 was also up 0.1% at 705, led by Stone Energy Corp (NYSE:SGY) up 18.3% to $1.16.
Oil prices helped support the smaller tickers, with the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate up 0.8% at $44.40.
Top US stock tickers S&P500 and Nasdaq were negative at midsession on Wednesday, weighed down by overnight earnings from tech giant Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and investors anxious ahead of the Federal Reserve rate-setting decision.
The S&P500 was down 0.8% at 2,090, while the Nasdaq lost 0.9% to 4,846 as Apple shares dropped by 6% to $98.05.
Earlier Apple shares plunged over 8% and wiped out $46bn off the company's market capitalisation after reporting after-hours on Tuesday second-quarter earnings of $1.90 a share on $50.56bn in revenue - marking its first quarter-over-quarter revenue decline since 2003. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected Apple to report earnings of about $2 a share on $51.97bn in revenue.
But it was better news for the smaller caps. The S&P Midcap 400 was 0.1% higher at 1,483, led by Dreamworks Animation (NASDAQ:DWA) up 17.2% to $31.79, on reports in the Wall Street Journal that NBC network-owner cable giant Comcast is kicking the animation studio's tires in preparation for a $3bn buyout offer.
But investors were wary ahead of the Fed's decision expected at around 1815 GMT. Economists expect the Fed to leave rates on hold and offer a dovish statement in view of a recent spate of fair-to-weak economic data in the world's biggest economy. But the Fed is also expected to leave options open for a hike in June.
Open
Wall Street shares started lower, as had been indicated by futures, as tech giant Apple NASDAQ:AAPL) weighed on the Nasdaq index.
Shares were down over 7% in New York to US$96.91 as the group reported a 13% drop in revenue after the bell on Tuesday, the first dip in 13 years, which it blames on the ever slipping sales of its flagship iPhone.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq index was down over 37 at the time of writing at 4,850, while the broader S&P500 lost 1.7 to 2,090.
The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Index is down almost 13 at 17,977.
Connor Campbell at Spreadex.com, said: " Having spent years as the market’s darling the Apple is now experiencing what it is like to be on the other side of the equation, investors sending the stock 8% lower in after-hours trading as its quarterly revenue fell for the first 13 years."
Also causing a degree of nervousness is the Fed announcement expected soon after a two-day policy meeting. The consensus is that there will not be an interest rate rise, but the uncertainty always sparks market unease.
A notable small-cap riser was Cerebain Biotech (OTCQB: CBBT), which gained over 33% to US$0.50 as it said it intended to seek FDA approval for the development and testing of its medical device for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
In the UK at the time of writing, FTSE100 was up 0.24% at 6,299 despite reports that gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed to 0.4% quarter-on-quarter from 0.6% in the final quarter of 2015, but this was in line with consensus forecasts.