Gold prices rise from 2-wk low with focus on Russia-Ukraine, Jackson Hole
* Fed expected to stand pat on interest rates
* Alphabet jumps on record profit
* Microsoft shares down on valuation
* Dow down 0.35%, S&P flat, Nasdaq off 0.23%
(Updates prices to early afternoon)
By Shreyashi Sanyal and Shivani Kumaresan
April 28 (Reuters) - The Dow and Nasdaq indexes fell on
Wednesday as Amgen and Microsoft weighed, while investors
focused on a Federal Reserve meeting for updates on monetary
policy and waited for another batch of earnings from big
technology firms.
The U.S. central bank's policy statement is expected to
largely follow the mold established in December, when the Fed
said it would not change monetary policy until there was
"substantial further progress" in meeting its maximum employment
and 2% inflation goals. The statement is due at 2 p.m. EDT.
"Investors are obviously looking for a continuation of the
policy, which is very accommodative," said Andre Bakhos,
managing director at New Vines Capital LLC, New Jersey.
"They don't want to hear, 'We are going to raise rates'. If
something goes wrong, investors want to know the Fed will be
there."
The S&P 500 touched an all-time high earlier in the session,
powered by shares of Google parent Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O , which
jumped 3.7% after reporting a record profit for the second
consecutive quarter and announcing a $50 billion share buyback.
Both Alphabet and the S&P 500 communication services sector
.SLPRCL , which houses the company, also hit record highs.
Market participants are now prepping for results of Apple
Inc AAPL.O and Facebook Inc FB.O after markets close.
Facebook Inc FB.O is expected to report a rise in
first-quarter revenue, while Apple Inc AAPL.O is expected to
post a more than 32% jump in second-quarter revenue. Shares of
Facebook rose 1.4%, while Apple dipped 0.2%.
At 12:08 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 117.71 points, or 0.35%, at 33,867.22, the S&P 500 .SPX
was up 1.79 points, or 0.04%, at 4,188.51 and the Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 32.39 points, or 0.23%, at 14,057.83.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq .IXIC on Monday completed a full
recovery from its 11% correction that began in February, largely
supported by a rise in mega-cap stocks and ebbing inflation
fears.
Microsoft Corp MSFT.O met quarterly sales expectations and
beat profit estimates, but its shares fell 3.3% and pressured
the Nasdaq due to skepticism about one-off benefits included in
the results and high hopes after a year-long rally. Biotech Amgen Inc 's AMGN.O 7.5% decline weighed on the Dow
.DJI after it said its first-quarter sales and profit fell
due to a 7% drop in its net drug prices and a hit from the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Boeing Co BA.N fell 3.4% after posting a
wider-than-expected quarterly loss and pausing 737 MAX
deliveries over an electrical issue that has partly re-grounded
the fleet. Overall earnings for S&P 500 companies in the first quarter
are expected to jump 39.2% from a year earlier, according to
Refinitiv IBES data.
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to unveil a sweeping
$1.8 trillion package for families and education in his first
joint speech to Congress, senior White House officials say.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.24-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a
1.06-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 71 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 87 new highs and 18 new lows.