US stock futures were mixed this morning, but there was no equivocation in the market after the Fed's 12:30 ET announcement. Stocks finished sharply higher Wednesday, surging in the afternoon after the FOMC decided it would keep rates exceptionally low until at least late 2014. Blockbuster earnings from Apple (AAPL) last night ensured that the Nasdaq was the strongest performing index on the day, up 1.14%.
While stocks took off in the afternoon, the big mover after the Fed announcement was Gold (GLD). The gold ETF was negative on the day heading into the announcement, but exploded following it, finishing the day up 2.72%. The Fed seemed to hint an openness to future quantitative easing and a firmly dovish stance, rekindling some inflation expectations.
*DISCLOSURES: VXX, WYNN, SPY, WMT, FFIV, MCP, REE, LULU, OIH, DNDN, LVS, BAC, X, CROX, XLF, NFLX calls, SNDK calls, DNDN calls. Short NFLX, DIA.
