Locally, on October 28, the US Federal Reserve announced that it would maintain its interest rate unchanged, with Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin W. Wash emphasizing that inflation remains high.
Notably, Kevin W. Wash announced at the press conference that the Federal Open Market Committee would gradually reduce the frequency of monetary policy meetings from 2027 to 2028.
The three major US stock indices collectively rose, with the semiconductor sector continuing to rebound.
Microsoft and Alphabet, the parent company of Google, released their quarterly earnings after the market closed, with their stock prices performing differently.
US stocks across the board rose
Locally, on October 28, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.19% to 52475.1 points, the S&P 500 rose 0.28% to 7743.98 points, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.27% to 26549.85 points.
According to the Federal Reserve's statement, the target range for the federal funds rate remains at 3.75% to 4%.
This decision was passed with 10 votes in favor and 2 votes against, with Governors Cook and Cleveland Fed Chairman Hamark advocating for a 25-basis-point hike.
The statement pointed out that economic activity remains strong and that domestic spending remains resilient, but inflation remains high.
More information will be accumulated to help the committee determine the appropriate policy stance and ensure that inflation returns to its 2% target in a timely manner.
Wash stated in his opening remarks that the US inflation rate has approached its six-year high and that reducing inflation is the Federal Reserve's responsibility.
He believes that, following the 9/9 policy action, some businesses and households have faced tightened financial and credit conditions, but the overall financial conditions have not yet tightened.
Recently, energy and related prices have risen again, and the Federal Reserve must prevent some industries' price changes from spreading to the entire economy and maintain stable inflation expectations.
Wash reiterated that the Federal Reserve has made it clear that it is prepared to take action based on the situation.
Most of the "Big Seven" technology stocks fell.
Google-C rose 1.6%, Amazon rose 0.59%, while Microsoft, Tesla, and Apple all fell slightly, with NVIDIA and META falling more than 1%.
After the market closed, Microsoft and Alphabet released their quarterly earnings.
Microsoft's quarterly earnings report showed that the company's revenue in the first quarter of 2027 was $92.3 billion, up 19% from the same period last year.
Under US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), Microsoft's net income was $36.6 billion, up 32% from the same period last year.
Microsoft's cloud revenue was $63.9 billion, up 30% from the same period last year, with Azure revenue growing 48%.
Alphabet's quarterly earnings report showed that the company's revenue in the third quarter was $127.577 billion, up 25% from the same period last year.
Net income attributable to common shareholders was $26.170 billion, down from $34.979 billion in the same period last year.
Adjusted earnings per share fell to $2.12 from $2.87.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 1.75%, marking its fourth consecutive trading day of gains.
Micron Technology, Applied Materials, and ARM all rose more than 5%, with Kioxia, Micron Technology, and Supermicro all rising more than 3%, and Broadcom rising more than 2%.
Storage chip stocks were boosted by earnings.
SK Hynix's third-quarter operating profit rose 632% year-over-year to 8.333 trillion won.
Other technology stocks, including Vitec Technology, rose over 16% after the company announced that its third-quarter net sales rose 61% year-over-year.
Oracle rose 10.58%, with the company expecting its free cash flow to reach $30 billion in 2029 and explicitly stating its subsequent financing arrangements, alleviating concerns about the company's investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Regarding commodities, Wind data showed that, locally, on October 28, London spot gold rose 0.18%, while London spot silver fell 0.78%.
According to Xinhua News Agency, locally, on October 28, international oil prices rose.
The price of December futures for light crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $2.88 to $102.78 per barrel, up 2.88%.
The price of December futures for Brent crude oil on the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) rose $1.44 to $115.32 per barrel, up 1.26%.
Wash announced that the Federal Reserve would gradually reduce the frequency of monetary policy meetings from 2027 to 2028.
Wash stated that the Federal Open Market Committee would still hold eight monetary policy meetings per year.
However, in 2027, there would be one monetary policy meeting focused on the broader monetary policy strategy, without a vote on the federal funds rate and without a monetary policy statement.
In 2028, there would be two monetary policy meetings specifically focused on discussing the monetary policy strategy.
Wash stated that the Federal Reserve has made this decision and that the new Federal Open Market Committee schedule will take effect from autumn next year.