US stock prices went up a little on Wednesday because the Federal Reserve did not change its main interest rate, which most people expected. However, the Federal Reserve also said there were growing dangers for the US economy.

The S&P 500 went up by 0.4%, after two days of losses. Before that, it had gone up for nine days in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 284 points, which is 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite also went up by 0.3%.

Stock markets went up and down during the day, and the Dow Jones index even rose by 400 points. This happened because people hoped the US and China might start a trade deal to help the world economy. The two largest economies have been putting higher taxes on each other's goods in a trade war. People worry this could lead to an economic slowdown unless they trade more freely.

Hopes for better trade talks between the US and China increased after meetings were announced in Switzerland. However, President Trump later reduced this optimism by refusing to lower taxes on Chinese products. China says lowering these taxes is necessary before they can start talking.

This on-and-off uncertainty about taxes on imports has caused big changes in the U.S. economy. For example, people bought more things from other countries quickly before new taxes started. Even though there were these changes and surveys showed Americans felt less hopeful about the future, the central bank said the economy is still doing well right now.

Jerome Powell, who leads the Federal Reserve, said they have time to wait before changing interest rates. This is despite Trump wanting them to lower rates more quickly to boost the economy.

"There is a lot we don't know," Powell stated.

Powell said this is especially true because the trade war seems to be starting "a new period," and the United States is talking more about trade with other countries.

The Fed also said it knows that risks to the economy are growing because of tariffs. These tariffs could hurt the job market and make prices rise.

Powell said that if the big planned increases in taxes on imports continue, they will probably cause prices to go up, the economy to grow more slowly, and more people to lose their jobs.

This could lead to a difficult situation called "stagflation." This happens when the economy isn't growing, but prices are still increasing. It's a problem because the central bank doesn't have easy ways to solve it. For example, if they lower interest rates to help the economy and create jobs, it might make prices go up even more. But if they raise rates, it would slow down the economy.

Meanwhile, large American companies are making more profit at the start of 2025 than experts predicted.

The Walt Disney Company's shares increased by 10.8% because its profits were much better than expected. The company also said it expects higher profits in the future and added more than a million new streaming users.

However, companies are also still saying that economic uncertainty makes it harder for them to predict their future finances.

The company Marvell Technology, which makes computer chips, saw its stock price drop by 8% after it decided to move its meeting for investors from June to a later time because the economic future is unclear.

Overall, the S&P 500 increased by 24.37 points to 5,631.28. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also went up by 284.97 points, reaching 41,113.97. The Nasdaq composite gained 48.50, ending at 17,738.16.

In the bond market, the interest rates on government bonds went down after the central bank made an announcement. The interest rate on the 10-year government bond went down a little to 4.27% from 4.30% at the end of Tuesday.

In Europe, most markets fell, but markets in Asia increased.