US PRE MARKET

The S&P 500 Futures is trading at 2,683.88  up with +0.05% percent or +1.38 point. Other U.S. stock futures mixed in pre-market trading for  January 31.The Dow Futures is trading at 24,932.50  with  a loss of -0.14% percent or -35.50 point. The Nasdaq Futures is trading at 6,857.62  up with +0.30% percent or +20.37 point.

THURSDAY’S FACTORS AND EVENTS

he Fed said it will be “patient” with raising rates moving forward. In a statement, the central bank said: “The Committee will be patientas it determines what future adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate may be appropriate. ” The statement also dropped the word “gradual.”

The Fed addressed the balance sheet, which had been a concern for investors, in a separate statement. The Fed said it “is prepared to adjust any of the details for completing balance sheet normalization in light of economic and financial developments.”

WEDNESDAY’S ACTIVITY

For the day the Dow is trading at 25,014.86  up with +1.77% percent or +434.90 point. The S&P 500 is trading at 2,681.05 up with +1.55% percent or +41.05 point. The Nasdaq Composite is trading at 7,183.08  up with +2.20% percent or +154.79 point.

Other leading market index closes included the small-cap Russell 2000 Index closed at 1,486.94 up  with +1.05% percent or +15.49 point; the S&P 600 Small-Cap Index closed at 926.29  up with +1.01%percent or +9.22  point; the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index closed at 1,827.21 up with +0.62% percent or +11.20 point; the S&P 100 Index closed at 1,180.56  up with +1.72% percent or +19.91 point; the Russell 3000 Index closed at 1,583.04  up with  +1.49% percent or +23.32 point; the Russell 1000 Index closed at 1,485.67  up with +1.53% percent or +22.38 point.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere,  Japan’s Nikkei 225 is trading at 20,773.49  up with +1.06% percent or +216.95 point. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is trading at 27,925.64 up with +1.02% percent or +282.79 point. China’s Shanghai Composite is trading at 2,583.37 up with +0.30% percent or +7.79 point. India’s BSE Sensex is trading at 35,983.26  up with +1.10% percent or +392.01 point at 12:15 PM.The FTSE 100 is trading at 6,977.40 UP with +0.52% percent or +35.77 point. Germany’s DAX is trading at 11,173.41 with a loss of -0.074% percent or -8.25 point. France’s CAC 40 is trading at 4,980.04  up with +0.11% percent or +5.28  point. The Stoxx Europe 600 is trading at 358.44  with  a loss of -0.01% percent or -0.01% point.