Fed Pause Helps Treasury Yields Retreat and Stocks Climb

Many investors on Wednesday looked to the Federal Reserve for hints about whether this autumn’s unusual ascent in Treasury yields would help finish America’s inflation fight. The central bank’s message: maybe. 

In the tug of war between low-risk government debt and higher-risk equities, that was enough of a signal to push stocks higher Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%, or 222 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 1.6%. The S&P 500 increased 1.1%, led by the information-technology and communication services sectors.