04:02 PM EDT, 07/31/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended higher Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady.

* The Federal Open Market Committee left its target range for the federal funds rate unchanged at 5.25% to 5.50%, but changed its statement to reflect a more balanced approach to its dual mandate that shows both more concern about the job market and an acknowledgement of further progress on inflation. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell did not rule out the possibility that a rate cut could come in September, but said that would depend on the incoming data.

* Employment growth in the US private sector decelerated in July, while annual pay gains for job stayers recorded the slowest pace in three years, Automatic Data Processing ( ADP ) reported.

* The Bureau of Labor Statistics is expected to report Friday that the US economy added 175,000 nonfarm jobs this month, which would mark a decrease from the 206,000 gain posted for June.

* September West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $3.68 at $78.37 per barrel, while September Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $2.09 at $80.72 following data that US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by 2.8 million barrels in the week ended July 26 after a 3.1 million barrels decrease in the previous week.

* Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares were up 13% as Microsoft ( MSFT ) indicated it would continue spending on the company's chips to build artificial intelligence infrastructure, easing fears there would be a slowdown in the build out of AI servers.

* Marriott International ( MAR ) shares fell 4.7% after the hotel giant's Q2 sales fell short of market expectations, prompting a guidance cut for full-year earnings and global revenue per available room.