02:29 PM EDT, 04/03/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were higher intraday as markets parsed the latest remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.5% at 16,323.2 after midday Wednesday, while the S&P 500 rose 0.4% to 5,225.9. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2% to 39,234.6. Among sectors, energy and industrials led the gainers. Consumer staples and utilities were in the red.

Powell said the current economic strength and progress on inflation likely give policymakers the time to let incoming data guide their decisions on monetary policy. "We do not expect that it will be appropriate to lower our policy rate until we have greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably down toward 2%."

Separately, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic indicated he sees only one rate cut in 2024, coming in the fourth quarter, according to media reports.

"If the economy evolves as I expect, and that's going to be seeing continued robustness in (gross domestic product), unemployment and a slow decline of inflation through the course of the year, I think it would be appropriate for us to do start moving down at the end of this year, the fourth quarter," Bostic told CNBC.

The US two-year yield fell 1.6 basis points to 4.69% intraday, while the 10-year rate was little changed at 4.36%.

The US services sector continued to grow in March but at a slower sequential pace as demand eased, according to two separate surveys by the Institute for Supply Management and S&P Global (SPGI).

Employment in the US private sector grew at the fastest pace since July last month while there were signs pointing to wage growth picking up, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reported.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.8% to $85.85 per barrel intraday.

In company news, NRG Energy (NRG) said it has agreed to repurchase roughly $251 million of its convertible senior notes due 2048. The company' shares were up 6.3%, the second-best performer on the S&P 500.

Intel (INTC) shares declined 7.6%, the steepest decline on the Nasdaq and the Dow, and the second-worst on the S&P 500. The chipmaker late Tuesday restated operating losses for its foundry business, as it reorganizes its financial reporting structure to save costs and provide greater transparency.

Gold was up 1.5% at $2,315.10 per troy ounce, while silver jumped 4.6% to $27.12 per ounce.