01:09 PM EST, 02/19/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were mixed in choppy midday trading Wednesday as investors weighed geopolitical risks and punitive import tariffs amid a steeper-than-forecast slump in housing starts. The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 at their respective 20,031.7 and 6,131.2 levels changed little after trading lower earlier in the session. The Dow Jones Industrial...

02:37 PM EST, 02/19/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Minutes of the Jan. 28-29 FOMC meeting showed that participants believed they were 'well positioned' to pause rate reductions given the uncertainty of the fiscal policy outlook and still elevated inflation. The minute said that the FOMC would like to see further progress on inflation before considering further rate reductions, particularly given the...

02:35 PM EST, 02/19/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Housing starts fell by 9.8% to a 1.366 million annual rate in January, with single-family housing starts and multi-family starts both lower. Building permits rose by 0.1% to a 1.483 million rate in January. Single-family permits were unchanged, while multi-family permits were up slightly. Homes permitted but not started increased by 1.4%, suggesting...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's initial policy proposals stoked concern at the Federal Reserve about higher inflation, with firms telling the U.S. central bank they generally expected to raise prices to pass through the cost of import tariffs, policymakers said at a meeting held about a week after Trump's January 20 inauguration. Participants at the U.S. central bank's January...