US stocks jump more than 2% after Fed announcement

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 2.5% to 4,277.78, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.6% to 12,886.82

Wall Street stocks rallied Wednesday after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 50 basis points, but signalled an even larger hike was not under consideration.

Near 1930 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.4 per cent at 33,917.72 after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the US central bank was not actively weighing a 75-basis point increase.

Also Read | US Federal Reserve raises interest rate by half point to contain inflation

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 2.5 per cent to 4,277.78, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.6 per cent to 12,886.82.

Wednesday interest rate hike -- the biggest since 2000 -- was coupled with a move to begin reducing the central bank's bond holdings from June 1, marking the Fed's most aggressive steps so far to counter inflation.

But Powell said 50-basis point increases "should be on the table at the next couple of meetings," rejecting a possible three-quarter point rise.

Talk of the larger rate hike has rattled investors in recent weeks.

Powell's remark "has catalyzed a huge sigh of relief in the market considering the Fed funds futures market was assigning a 95 per cent probability for 75-bps hike next month," said Briefing.com.