Stocks gained ground in morning trading on Wall Street Wednesday
ahead of a widely expected interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve. The
S&P 500 rose 23.04 points or 0.60% to 3,878.97 as of 10.17 am Eastern Time.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 183 points or 0.6% to 30,895. The Nasdaq
rose 33.56 points or 0.30% to 11,459.48.

The broader market has been hovering between gains and
losses throughout the week as investors watch for the latest update on interest
rates from the Federal Reserve. Later in the day. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will
discuss the central bank’s views on the economy and the Fed’s efforts to
control the highest inflation in four decades.

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Treasury yields remained relatively stable. The yield on
the two-year Treasury, which tends to follow expectations for Fed action, rose
to 3.98% from 3.97% late Tuesday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps
determine mortgage rates, fell to 3.54% from 3.56% from late Tuesday.

The Fed has been increasing interest rate aggressively to
try and control soaring prices on everything from food to clothing. It is expected to raise its key short-term rate by three-quarters of a point for the third time. That would
lift its benchmark rate, which affects many consumer and business loans, to a
range of 3% to 3.25%, the highest level in 14 years, and up from zero at the
start of the year.

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The central bank’s aim is to slow economic growth and cool inflation,
but Wall Street is concerned that it could go too far in slowing economic
growth and push the economy into a recession. Those concerns have been
reinforced by reports showing that inflation remains stubbornly high and
statements from Fed officials they will keep raising rates until they are sure
inflation is coming under control.

Central banks worldwide are also struggling with inflation.
The Bank of Japan started a two-day monetary policy meeting Wednesday, although
economists expect the central bank to stick to its easy monetary policy. Rate
decisions from Norway, Switzerland and the Bank of England are next. Sweden
surprised economists this week with a full point hike.

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Global tensions remain high as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
continues. Russian-controlled regions of eastern and southern Ukraine have
announced plans to start voting this week to become part of Russia. The war has
killed thousands of people, raised food prices worldwide and caused energy
costs to soar.

Gasoline prices, which helped trigger inflation for months,
have been declining. However, the average price for a gallon of gas went up for
the first time in more than three months, rising to $3.681 from $3.674,
according to motor club AAA.

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Several companies saw their stock prices surge after giving
investors encouraging financial updates. Cheerios maker General Mills gained
5.9% after raising its profit forecast for the year. CoverGirl owner Coty jumped
5.1% following a solid revenue growth update and Walmart added 1.9% after
saying it will hire 40,000 US workers for the holidays, a majority of them
seasonal workers.

Cruise line operators declined as Hurricane Fiona continued
to batter the Caribbean. Carnival shed 5.7%.