U.S. stocks lost momentum on Wednesday closing the session lower after the Federal Reserve decided to leave interest rates near zero and kept its outlook on the economy relatively unchanged.
The Dow Jones industrial lost 81 points to 9,749. The S&P500 Index dropped 11 points to 1,061 and the NASDAQ fell 15 points to 2,131.
On the economic news front: At the end of a two day policy meeting, the Federal Reserve announced that it had decided to keep the fed funds rate, near zero. The Reserve Bank says economic activity has picked up following its severe downturn. Conditions in financial markets have improved further, and activity in the housing sector has increased.
And according to CNN Money Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told a House Financial Services committee hearing on regulatory reform that economic growth in the U.S. appears to be improving but that reforms must be enacted to fix a broken system.
In company news: Shares in U.S. Airways Group Inc (NYSE:LCC) dropped 13.58 per cent to $4.52. The company announced plans to raise cash, saying it plans to sell 26.3 million shares of its common stock to Citigroup.
Shares in manufacturer of branded consumer foods General Mills Inc (NYSE:GIS) rose 4.64 per cent to $63.80. The company posted earnings for the quarter that topped forecasts and upgraded its outlook for the full year as a result of strong sales of its cereal brands like Cheerios.
Shares in specialty retailer and a distributor of automotive replacement parts AutoZone Inc (NYSE:AZO) declined 7.47 per cent to $141.50. The company reported a 3.1 per cent fall in profit for the fourth quarter which was a week shorter than last year.
And shares in biopharmaceutical company Opexa Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:OPXA) gained 12.43 per cent to $3.89. According to Reuter's Swiss drug maker Novartis has paid Opexa $500,000 under a stem cell technology transfer agreement.
Checking the NASDAQ Top 100: The best performer overnight was Electronic Arts, adding 7.07 per cent to $19.83, followed by Xilinx and Altera Corporation. On the downside, Cintas Corporation was the worst performer, shares fell 4.8 per cent to $28.35. Starbucks and Joy Global also closed lower.
