05:07 PM EDT, 03/20/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed at record highs Wednesday after the Federal Reserve left its benchmark lending rate unchanged and maintained expectations for three cuts this year.

The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.3% to 16,369.4, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1% to 39,512.1. The S&P 500 advanced 0.9% to 5,224.6. All three indexes surpassed their previous respective closing records. Among sectors, consumer discretionary paced the gainers. Only health care and energy closed lower.

The central bank's Federal Open Market Committee held interest rates steady at 5.25% to 5.50%, in line with Wall Street's projections and marking the fifth straight pause. The FOMC left its median rate expectation for this year unchanged at 4.6%, indicating three cuts, but raised the outlooks for 2025 and 2026.

It would "likely be appropriate" for policymakers to start easing monetary policy at some point this year if the economy evolves broadly as projected, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in a press conference after the panel's meeting.

"Despite hotter-than-expected inflation data as of late, the committee remains confident that it will be appropriate to begin reducing policy firming at some point later this year," Stifel said in a note. "That being said, such an optimistic outlook remains contingent on the expectation that inflation will continue to retreat back towards the target of 2%."

The US two-year yield fell 7.9 basis points to 4.61% Wednesday, while the 10-year rate eased 1.5 basis points to 4.28%.

In company news, Apollo Global Management (APO) has made an $11 billion bid to acquire Paramount Global's (PARA, PARAA) film and TV studio, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed sources. Paramount's class A shares jumped 8.8% while class B shares advanced nearly 12%. Apollo rose 1.7%.

Equinix (EQIX) shares slipped 2.3%, among the steepest declines on the S&P 500, after short-seller Hindenburg accused the company of manipulating its accounting. A representative for Equinix told MT Newswires that the company is "investigating the claims and will respond in due course."

West Texas Intermediate crude oil slid 2% to $81.84 per barrel Wednesday. Commercial crude stockpiles in the US decreased by 2 million barrels to 445 million barrels through the week ended March 15, according to the Energy Information Administration. The consensus estimate on Bloomberg was for a decline of 1 million barrels.

Mortgage applications in the US fell for the first time in three weeks as rates across most loan types increased, following last week's stronger-than-expected inflation data for February, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Gold rose 1.3% to $2,186.90 per troy ounce, while silver jumped 2.3% to $25.71 per ounce.