Shares of banks and other financial institutions rose slightly alongside Treasury yields as traders bet the Federal Reserve would manage to raise interest rates without further disrupting global markets.
The Fed's rate-setting committee is "of a mind" to raise rates in March. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell brushed off concerns, raised in the press conference, about volatility on the stock market.
"We feel that the communication we have with market participants and the general public are working and that financial conditions are reflecting in advance the decisions that we make," he said.
United Kingdom stocks may outperform their European peers in the coming months because they tend to draw investors during periods of "risk off," rising oil prices and higher interest rates, said strategists at brokerage Morgan Stanley, in a note to clients.
A financial-technology startup backed by Walmart said it plans to purchase two small firms and launch under a new brand, Even Responsible Finance, which is used by employers to offer workers their paychecks early and counts Walmart as a large customer, and ONE Finance, from whom the startup will take the ONE brand.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-26-22 1745ET
