Wall Street: Fed holds rates, Alphabet drops 10% after hours
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose 0.3% and the Dow 0.2%. The Fed kept its key rate at 3.75% to 4%, but two officials wanted a hike. After the close Microsoft rose and Alphabet tumbled.
US stocks edged higher on Wednesday, a third straight gain for the S&P 500. The S&P 500 (500 large US companies) rose 0.28% to 7,743.98 points. The Nasdaq Composite (an index heavy in tech companies) gained 0.27% to 26,549.85, and the Dow Jones 0.19% to 52,475.10 (AP, Reuters). Stocks swung after the Fed decision but ended higher.
The Federal Reserve (the Fed, the US central bank) kept its key rate at 3.75% to 4%. The vote was 10 to 2: Lisa Cook and Beth Hammack wanted a quarter-point hike (Yahoo Finance). Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said: "But inflation remains elevated." According to CME FedWatch, markets now see an 85% chance of a rate hike in December (Reuters). The 10-year US Treasury yield briefly rose to around 5.04%.
Chip stocks gained again: the SOX semiconductor index rose 1.75%. Vertiv jumped 16.5% after strong results and a higher forecast. SK Hynix's US shares climbed 13.3% after a more than sevenfold profit jump, and Micron rose 5.9% (Reuters). Boston Scientific lost 5.8% after a weaker forecast, and Enphase 16% on soft solar demand.
After the close, Alphabet (Google's parent) fell about 10%. Revenue of $127.6 billion missed the expected $128.2 billion, and free cash flow was negative at $9.07 billion (Reuters). Microsoft rose 3% to 4%: revenue grew 19% to $92.28 billion, and its Azure cloud more than 48% (SiliconANGLE, AP). US crude (WTI) rose 2.9% to $102.78 on supply worries, including a Houthi claim to have hit a Saudi refinery (not confirmed by Saudi Arabia).
| Index | Close | Day, points | Day % | Year to date % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones | 52,475.10 | 97.53 | +0.19 % | +9.2 % |
| S&P 500 | 7,743.98 | 21.38 | +0.28 % | +13.1 % |
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,549.85 | 72.04 | +0.27 % | +14.2 % |
| Russell 2000 | 2,830.51 | 11.64 | +0.41 % | +14.0 % |
| SOX chip index | 11,684.00 | – | +1.75 % | – |
| Stock | Day % | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Genmab | +28.25 % | cancer drug trial data |
| Vertiv | +16.48 % | strong quarter, higher outlook |
| SK Hynix (US shares) | +13.30 % | profit up more than sevenfold |
| Micron | +5.90 % | after SK Hynix results |
| Robinhood | −3.30 % | less crypto trading, profit miss |
| Boston Scientific | −5.80 % | profit forecast trimmed |
| Enphase | −16.03 % | weak outlook, soft solar demand |
| Microsoft | +2.63 % | after hours: revenue and Azure beat |
| Alphabet | −10.12 % | after hours: revenue and profit miss |
| ServiceNow | −17.87 % | after hours |
| Fortinet | −26.07 % | after hours |
| Indicator | Tue 27 Oct | Wed 28 Oct | Day % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-year US Treasury yield (%) | 4.99 | 5.04 | – |
| 2-year US Treasury yield (%) | 4.73 | 4.73 | – |
| Brent crude (USD/barrel) | 113.88 | 115.32 | +1.26 % |
| WTI crude (USD/barrel) | 99.90 | 102.78 | +2.88 % |
| Gold, December futures (USD/oz) | – | 4,051.60 | −0.53 % |
| VIX fear gauge | 17.52 | 16.91 | −3.48 % |
| Indicator | Level | Change % | Time (CET) / source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nasdaq futures | – | −1.00 % | 03:49, Reuters (about) |
| Nikkei 225 (Tokyo) | 64,073.17 | +0.20 % | 06:03, AP |
| Kospi (Seoul) | 5,880.25 | −2.20 % | 06:03, AP |
| Hang Seng (Hongkong) | 23,101.86 | – | 06:03, AP (under +0.1%) |
| Shanghai Composite | 3,647.12 | −0.90 % | 06:03, AP |
| S&P/ASX 200 (Sydney) | 8,888.50 | +0.50 % | 06:03, AP |
| Brent crude (USD/barrel) | 114.91 | −0.40 % | 03:49, Reuters |
| WTI crude (USD/barrel) | 101.46 | −1.30 % | 06:03, AP |
| Euro in dollars (Wed: 1.1154) | 1.11 | – | 06:03, AP |
| Dollar in yen (Wed: 157.84) | 157.72 | – | 06:03, AP |
For information only, not investment advice. Prices as of the time stated, not real-time quotes.
Sources
- AP via KRMG: How major US stock indexes fared Wednesday 10/28/2026 (Schluss, Punkte, seit Jahresbeginn; 15:20 CDT)
- Reuters via Central Oregon Daily: Wall Street ends higher as Fed holds key rate steady, focus turns to earnings (28.10.2026)
- Yahoo Finance: Rate decision live – Fed hält Zins, Abstimmung 10:2, Warsh-Zitate, Renditen (28.10.2026)
- StockTitan: Stock Market Today Live October 28, 2026 (Fed-Entscheid, Vertiv, Enphase, Genmab)
- Yahoo Finance: Stock Market Today, Oct. 28 – Markets Edge Higher as Fed Holds Rates Steady
- Capp Notes: Closing Look – Wednesday, October 28, 2026 (SOX, Renditen, Gold, Öl, VIX, nachbörsliche Mover)
- Nation Thailand: US crude gains 3% on October 28 as Middle East supply fears deepen (Settlement Brent/WTI)
- Reuters via Lufkin Daily News: Alphabet shares fall after revenue miss, cash burn worsens (28.10.2026)
- SiliconANGLE: Microsoft's stock rises on solid earnings and revenue beat, with Azure growing 48% (28.10.2026, 21:34 EDT)
- AP via KRMG: Asian shares and U.S. futures are mixed after Google parent Alphabet's earnings disappoint (29.10.2026, 00:03 CDT)
- Reuters via Business Recorder: Asian shares fall as Alphabet earnings miss drags Wall St futures lower (29.10.2026, 07:49 PKT)
