By DPA,
New York: Major US stock indices fell slightly Wednesday amid reports that the Federal Reserve was planning a gradual monetary intervention to prop up the world’s largest economy.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the central bank will announce after its rate-setting meeting next week a plan to buy a few hundreds of billions of dollars in US Treasury debt over the coming months.
The move would mark a more cautious approach than what was taken at the height of the financial crisis in late 2008, when the central bank bought nearly $2 trillion in government bonds and mortgage-related assets.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 43.18 points, or 0.39 percent, to 11,126.28. The broader Standard and Poor’s 500 Index was down 3.19 points, or 0.27 percent, to 1,182.45. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index added 5.97 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,503.26.
The US currency rose against the euro to 72.63 euro cents from 72.19 euro cents. The dollar climbed against the Japanese currency to 81.77 yen from 81.46 yen.