Stock market today: Live updates

• The Federal Reserve maintained interest rates at their current levels during the July FOMC meeting, marking the second hold under Chair Kevin Warsh. • The decision comes amid growing dissent within the committee and concerns from economists, such as NerdWallet's Elizabeth Renter, regarding economic unpredictability and affordability challenges.

• The Federal Reserve is projected to raise interest rates twice before the end of the year, signaling a shift toward tighter monetary policy. • Market analysts are using the CME Group's FedWatch tool, which tracks futures prices, to calculate the probability of these upcoming rate hikes.

• The Federal Reserve decided to keep its key benchmark interest rate unchanged at approximately 3.6% during its meeting on Wednesday. • The rate-setting committee reached this 9-3 decision following two days of deliberations, marking the fifth consecutive meeting without a rate change.

• The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will announce its interest rate decision on July 29 following a two-day meeting that began on July 28. • The committee is evaluating critical economic indicators, including labor market conditions, economic growth, and inflation trends, to determine the policy outcome.

• Indian equity benchmarks rallied on Wednesday, with the Nifty 50 rising 1.1% to close above 24,250 and the Sensex gaining over 800 points (1.1%) to settle above 77,600. • The market surge was primarily driven by strong gains in the IT and metal sectors.

• Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is evaluating a potential interest rate hike to strengthen the central bank's efforts to combat inflation. • The Fed aims to bring inflation back down to its 2% target, but faces conflicting data from the labor market and economic uncertainty.

• Donald Trump and his allies are attempting to reshape the Federal Reserve, moving beyond the typical focus on interest rate adjustments. • The effort involves challenging the central bank's independence and seeking greater political influence over its monetary policy decisions.

• Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh is presiding over his second meeting, where the central bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold. • Despite the likely status quo, Warsh is anticipated to face strong dissension from other officials regarding the Fed's monetary policy direction.

• Investors are closely monitoring the Federal Reserve's upcoming interest rate decision following a three-session winning streak that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average surge over 500 points. • President Donald Trump has publicly criticized the Fed's Board of Governors as "very political" with "bad intentions," while praising official Warsh.

• The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is preparing to vote on whether to maintain current interest rates or implement a hike to combat persistent inflation. • While the committee is expected to keep rates steady, Federal Reserve official Kevin Warsh faces a critical test in managing an escalating affordability crisis.

• European stock markets, including the FTSE, opened higher as investors moved past the memory chip sell-off that impacted Asian markets overnight. • Market sentiment remains volatile due to a heavy schedule of corporate earnings reports and upcoming central bank announcements.