HD Home Depot Inc

By Avantika Chilkoti and Karen Langley 

U.S. stocks were mixed Wednesday as investors await the latest policy decision from the Federal Reserve and fresh cues on the strength of the world's largest economy.

The S&P 500 gained 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, slipped 0.1%, weighed down by declines in the shares of Boeing and Home Depot.

Investors are braced for a busy few days as the U.S. and European central banks hold policy meetings that will provide fresh assessments of key economic indicators, as well as a general election in the U.K. that could prove to be a turning point for Brexit.

The Fed will conclude Wednesday a two-day meeting, where policy makers are widely expected to hold the federal-funds rate unchanged. The Fed cut interest rates at its past three meetings, but Chairman Jerome Powell has indicated both that there is a very high bar for the Fed to raise rates and that the economic outlook would need to weaken materially to consider lowering them further.

"I do think we're finally at the point where maybe monetary policy will become less of what we need to watch, and instead it will be more focused on the company fundamentals and the fundamentals of the economy, " said Ron Temple, head of U.S. equity at Lazard Asset Management.

Meanwhile, fresh data Wednesday showed consumer prices rose moderately in November, indicating inflation has remained in check despite historically low unemployment and the trade conflict with China. The inflation numbers aren't likely to sway the Fed's interest-rate decision.

Investors were also continuing to parse headlines for indications on the progress of the U.S.-China trade talks, after the The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that negotiators from both sides were preparing to delay fresh U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports due to go into effect on Dec. 15.

Some analysts remain concerned that existing tariffs imposed on Chinese imports are already starting to hurt the U.S. economy.

"It's going to come home to roost for the one element of the U.S. economy that has always, always, always pulled the economy out of any slump and that's the U.S. consumer," said Matt Cairns, a rates strategist at Rabobank.

Shares of Boeing fell 1.2% as the House held a hearing on the 737 MAX jet. The Wall Street Journal reported U.S. regulators allowed the 737 MAX to keep flying after its first fatal crash last fall even though their analysis indicated it could become one of the most accident-prone airliners in decades without design changes.

Home Depot dropped 2% after forecasting fiscal 2020 same-store sales below Wall Street expectations. Shares of Children's Place declined 22% after the retailer's third-quarter sales missed analysts' estimates and it reduced its revenue forecast. GameStop declined 18% after the videogame retailer cut its financial guidance following worse-than-expected quarterly results.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury was 1.816%, down from 1.833% Tuesday.

In Europe, the U.K.'s FTSE 250 equity index slipped 0.6% ahead of a general election scheduled for Thursday that will help determine the course of the U.K.'s withdrawal from the European Union.

Some opinion polls show Prime Minister Boris Johnson's lead narrowing, and a new, closely watched YouGov poll couldn't rule out a hung Parliament. It showed that Mr. Johnson's Conservative Party is set to win a majority of 28 seats, down from a 68-seat majority forecast in a survey last month.

The state-backed oil major Saudi Arabian Oil Co., which was among the most closely watched stocks, gained 10% by the close of trading in Riyadh. That was the upper limit for the stock, which made its debut after the world's largest initial public offering.

Write to Avantika Chilkoti at Avantika.Chilkoti@wsj.com and Karen Langley at karen.langley@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 11, 2019 12:28 ET (17:28 GMT)

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