Markets mostly up after Fed news

U.S. stock indexes overcame an afternoon wobble to close mostly higher Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said it would start reducing its huge bond portfolio next month and was still on track to raise interest rates later this year.

The central bank's announcement drove bond yields higher, lifting shares in banks and other financial companies. Banks benefit from higher bond yields because it means they can charge higher interest rates on loans.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index inched up 1.59 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,508.24. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 41.79 points, or 0.2 percent, to 22,412.59. The modest gains nudged both indexes to record highs, extending a run of milestones that stretches back to last week.

The Nasdaq composite lost 5.28 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,456.04. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks added 5.02 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,445.42.

Fed policymakers decided to leave the central bank's short-term benchmark interest rate between 1 percent and 1.25 percent, but also said they still expect to increase the rate one more time this year and three times in 2018, if persistently low inflation rebounds.

After the announcement, bond prices slumped, sending the yield on the 10-year Treasury note to 2.27 percent from 2.25 percent late Tuesday.

The Fed statement also sent the dollar higher against other currencies. The dollar rose to 112.38 yen from 111.50 yen on Tuesday. The euro weakened to $1.1885 from $1.1997.

Technology companies were among the biggest decliners. Qorvo slid $4, or 5.4 percent, to $70.32. Adobe Systems also slumped. The business software company posted solid quarterly results, but investors were concerned about the performance of its cloud business. The stock lost $6.64, or 4.2 percent, to $149.96.

Traders also sold off several packaged-food companies after General Mills' latest quarterly results fell short of Wall Street's expectations. The cereal maker slid $3.21, or 5.8 percent, to $52.17. Kellogg fell $1.15, or 1.7 percent, to $64.72, while Campbell Soup lost 81 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $46.51.

Bed Bath & Beyond dropped 15.9 percent after the home goods retailer reported that its latest quarterly sales at stores open at least a year, a key metric for retailers, fell short of analysts' forecasts. The stock lost $4.29 to $22.74.

Energy companies rose along with the price of crude oil. Chesapeake Energy added 15 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $4.19.

Benchmark U.S. crude added 93 cents, or 1.9 percent, to settle at $50.41 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained $1.15, or 2.1 percent, to $56.29 a barrel in London.

Wholesale gasoline was little changed at $1.66 a gallon. Heating oil added 3 cents to $1.81 a gallon. Natural gas declined 3 cents to $3.09 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Among metals, gold gained $5.80 to $1,316.40 an ounce. Silver rose 6 cents to $17.33 an ounce. Copper held steady at $2.97 a pound.