19.09.201722:05:00UTC+00Wall Street Climbs as Fed Meeting Begins

U.S. equities advanced on Tuesday as the Federal Reserve started its two-day monetary policy meeting. The three major indexes reported intraday highs on Monday.

The Dow Jones industrial average marked its 41st record close of the year, climbing 0.18 percent to 22,370.80. Verizon and Goldman Sachs contributed the most to the gains.

The S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to a record peak of 2,506.65, with telecommunications and financials leading gainers. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.1 percent and also reported a record close of 6,461.32.

The Fed is not expected to hike rates following its meeting. However, several market participants believe the central bank will announce the tapering of its $4.5 trillion portfolio.

The healthcare index was one of the biggest decliners amid losses in insurers like United Health, which dropped 1.9 percent as a result of recent efforts in Washington to overhaul Obamacare.

The largest U.S. telephone operators, Verizon and AT&T climbed over two percent, helping to lift the S&P. Wireless carrier T-Mobile advanced 5.3 percent while Sprint soared 8.1 percent, after a report that they were in active merger talks.

Tesla dropped 2.4 percent after Jefferies began coverage of the electric car maker's stock with “underperform”.

Best Buy tumbled 7.4 percent after the retailer forecast 2021 adjusted earnings well below Wall Street estimates. The stock was one of the largest laggards on the consumer discretionary index.