NEW YORK — U.S. stocks rose Wednesday after the Federal Reserve left its key interest rate unchanged, as investors expected. Energy companies climbed again as the price of oil came close to a six-month high. Technology stocks were battered following weak results from Apple and Twitter.
Stocks opened mostly lower in muted early trading, but they moved higher after the Fed released its decision on interest rates. Bond yields fell and investors bought high-dividend phone and utility companies instead. Thanks to the losses for tech stocks, the Nasdaq composite index fell for the fifth day in a row.
The Dow Jones industrial average picked up 51.23 points, or 0.3 percent, to 18,041.55. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 3.45 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,095.15. The Nasdaq composite index dropped 25.14 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,863.14.
The price of crude oil started with big gains, turned lower, and then bounced back. It wound up at its highest price since early December. Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose $1.29, or 2.9 percent, to close at $45.33 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, added $1.44, or 3.1 percent, to $47.18 a barrel in London.
