U.S. shares mostly lower on Fed forecast; Dow off 0.10%

Investing.com - U.S. stocks closed mixed to lower on Wednesday, as investors sold shares after the Federal Reserve stated it forecasts slower growth and little progress on the employment front.

At the close of  U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.10%, the S&P 500 index declined 0.17%, while the Nasdaq Composite index eased higher by 0.02%.

Although  the Federal Reserve agreed to ramp up Operation Twist, it stated it sees little progress with employment and forecasted slower growth sending shares skidding lower on the session

Meanwhile, sentiment found mild support after Evangelos Venizelos, the head of Greece’s Pasok party, announced that a coalition government had been formed, which will allow Athens to resume negotiations with creditors on its international bailout deal.

Adobe Systems plummeted 6.45% after cutting its full-year revenue outlook on Tuesday, given that weak European demand is likely to affect sales of the recently launched versions of the company’s design software. 

Also in the tech sector, chip equipment maker FSI International saw shares dive 16.44%, after forecasting a weak fourth quarter seeing as the global economic slowdown delays customer spending.

Procter & Gamble shed 0.57% as it forecast that annual earnings for its coming fiscal year would be between flat and up by a mid-single digit percentage amount, with underlying sales set to show a 2 to 4% increase.

On the upside, Jabil Circuit shares jumped 2.01% on expectations that it retained a key mobile phone customer, although it forecast fourth-quarter results below analysts' estimates as sales stagnate. 

In the financial sector, JP Morgan climbed 2.12%, after saying it sold off 65 to 70% of its losing “London Whale” position which led to a multibillion dollar loss for the U.S. lender.  

Meanwhile, a Manhattan federal judge decided against the bank in a lawsuit over losses on securities backed by risky home equity loans. The ruling could potentially support claims by insurers seeking to hold banks responsible for such losses.

Other U.S. lenders added to gains, as shares in Bank of America rose 0.62% and Citigroup added 0.46%.

Elsewhere, Idenix Pharmaceuticals saw shares surge 10.46% on positive testing news for its hepatitis C drug IDX184.

Other stocks in focus included Bed Bath & Beyond and Red Hat, due to report results after the closing bell.

At the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50  moved higher by 0.43%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.28%, while Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 0.45%.

Investors are awaiting U.S. initial jobless claims and existing home sales, as well as Canadian retail sales and a talk by ECB president Mario Draghi on Thursday.