US markets edge higher despite hawkish Fed minutes

Anna Fedorova
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US markets continued to edge higher on Wednesday, despite the Federal Reserve's latest minutes suggesting an interest rate hike may come sooner than expected.

The minutes published on Wednesday revealed policymakers "generally agreed" the labour market is showing signs of improvement, despite previous minutes suggesting there is "significant" slack in jobs. The latest minutes state "labor market conditions had moved noticeably closer to those viewed as normal in the longer run," which could prompt an early rate hike. However, the news failed to put downward pressure on US stocks, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones indicies closing up 0.25% and 0.35% respectively. The technology-heavy Nasdaq index slipped slightly, however. The US dollar was ...

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