Toronto Stock Exchange and the Federal Reserve

benchmark rate: Half of the TSX index eight main sub-sectors clicked higher, according to Xinhua China. The Federal Reserve decided Wednesday to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged in a range between 0.25 and 0.5 percent. The Toronto Stock Exchange benchmark Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index added 46.45 points, or 0.38 percent, to close at 12,377.77 points. The U.S. central bank has opted to hike its benchmark rate in late 2015, the first time it had moved its rate in almost a decade from record lows. "The committee is closely monitoring global economic and financial developments and is assessing their implications for the labor market and inflation," said the Fed policy-setting committee. Fed policymakers will be able to sift through the January and February employment reports before their next policy meeting in March. Analysts believe that financial markets will be looking at the forward guidance to see when the next hike will occur. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.