US stocks closed mixed overnight, trimming earlier gains after the Federal Reserve announced interest rates will remain steady, at near zero.
Stocks had risen in the afternoon as investors welcomed rising commodity prices and economic news that signaled that unemployment is easing.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 30 points to 9,802. The S&P500 Index added 1 point to 1,047 and the NASDAQ dipped 2 points to 2,056.
Looking closer at the latest in economic news: Payroll services firm ADP said employers in the private sector cut 203,000 jobs in October after cutting 227,000 in September.
In a separate report, Challenger, Gray and Christmas said the number of layoffs slowed to 55,679 in October, down 16% from September.
In other economic news, the Institute for Supply Management's reading on the services sector of the economy fell to 50.6 in October from 50.9 in September.
In company news:Ambac Financial Group (NYSE:ABK) shares soared 35.14% to $1.50. The world’s second-largest bond insurer reported third-quarter net income of $2.19 billion, reversing a loss from a year earlier, after unrealized mark-to-market gains in its credit derivatives portfolio.
Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) shares fell 14.55% to $26.84. The biggest maker of portable navigation devices in the US admitted that sales declined for a fourth consecutive quarter.
Kraft (NYSE:KFT) shares fell 3.16% to $26.67. The company’s CEO Irene Rosenfeld’s vow to remain disciplined on her bid for Cadbury has sparked speculation that Kraft may scrap its offer as a takeover deadline approaches.
Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) shares rose 1.48% to $28.03. The world’s biggest media company won government approval to build a theme park in Shanghai, giving it access to consumers in mainland China’s richest city.
In the NASDAQ Top 100: Seagate Technology was the best performer, adding 2.65% to $14.72, Followed by Adobe and Infosys Technologies. The biggest drag on the NASDAQ was Garmin, followed by Henry Schein and Research in Motion.
