Honda is a top performer among local stocks Wednesday

Honda is a top performer among local stocks Wednesday

Wall Street swung to a mixed finish after the Federal Reserve hinted it may raise interest rates two more times this year, even as it held them steady Wednesday.

The S&P 500 finished the day 0.1% higher after pinballing between gains and losses following the Fed’s announcement. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 232 points, or 0.7%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.4%.

Locally, just nine of the 27 stocks on our Birmingham-area list closed higher.

Honda was a bright spot, as the automaker with an assembly plant in Lincoln eclipsed its 52-week high, closing up 2.1% at 32.48 a share.

Synovus Financial Corp., which operates 32 branches in 20 different cities and towns in the state of Alabama, and natural gas provider Spire were the biggest losers, dropping 3.4 and 3.2%, respectively.

The Fed closed its latest policy meeting by saying it would keep rates where they are, to give more time to see how its fusillade of hikes over the last 15 months is affecting the economy. It’s attempting the excruciating balancing act of slowing the economy just enough through rate increases to snuff out high inflation, but not so much as to break the job market and create a recession.