Stocks settled near a flatline on Wednesday, but all three major averages are still on track to post their biggest monthly gains of the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added nearly 15 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite lost nearly 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively.
Here's how the market settled on Wednesday:
S&P 500 Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Nasdaq Composite Index
As the month nears its end, the S&P 500 and Dow are up 8.5% and 7.2%, respectively, while the Nasdaq has advanced nearly 11% so far in November.
Making headlines on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book report showed that U.S. economic activity has broadly slowed over the past six week, while labor demand waned and price increases eased. Notably, the report said consumers demonstrated more "price sensitivity."
In economic news, third-quarter U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 5.2% at an annualized rate, according to the Commerce Department's report Wednesday, coming above the initial estimates of 4.9%. This is the second of three readings for the key economic indicator.
In single-stock news, General Motors
GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement that the company is preparing a budget for next year that will "fully offset the incremental costs of our new labor agreements," with the United Auto Workers union. That plan includes "reducing the capital intensity of the business, developing products even more efficiently, and further reducing," the company's fixed and variable costs.
On the earnings front, NetApp
Looking ahead, market participants will react to October's PCE index reading de out Thursday morning, as well as earnings reports from Salesforce
