11:23 AM EDT, 09/24/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The three major US indexes were roughly flat in late-morning trading Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday that stock prices appear to be "fairly highly valued."

In company news, Freeport-McMoRan ( FCX ) said Wednesday it is notifying commercial counterparties of a force majeure as a result of the Sept. 8 mud rush incident at its Grasberg Block Cave mine in Indonesia that resulted in the deaths of at least two people. Force majeure is a contractual clause that releases a party from liability or obligation when an extraordinary, uncontrollable event prevents them from fulfilling their contractual duties. Freeport-McMoRan ( FCX ) shares were down 10.5% around midday.

Alibaba ( BABA ) plans to increase its spending on artificial intelligence development as the Chinese e-commerce giant looks to become a "full-stack AI service provider," multiple news outlets reported, citing Chief Executive Eddie Wu. Alibaba ( BABA ) shares were up 10.2%.

Lithium Americas ( LAC ) said Wednesday that it is in talks with the US Department of Energy and General Motors ( GM ) over its Thacker Pass lithium joint venture project, including financing for the project. Lithium Americas ( LAC ) shares were up 95.3%, while those of GM were up 2%.

Oracle (ORCL) is looking to raise $15 billion from the US investment-grade bond market, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Oracle shares were down 2.5%.

Price: 40.62, Change: -4.75, Percent Change: -10.46