Stocks climbed Wednesday, recouping much of the prior two-day drop, after minutes from the Federal Reserve's last meeting noted an improving economy and labor market, while setting the stage for the central bank to end its course of monetary easing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which dropped over 100 points on Tuesday, closed unofficially 78 points higher. The S&P 500 rose 9 points but the Nasdaq added 27 points. The Federal Open Market Committee released minutes from its June meeting, at which the central bank reduced monthly bond purchases to $35 billion. The minutes pointed to the likely end of the asset-buying program also known as quantitative easing, or QE, in October. "Their assessment of the economy... is that the economy can now take its training wheels off, that there is now some degree of sustainable momentum where we can talk about" removing accommodation, said Jim Russell, senior equity strategist for US Bank Wealth Management.
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