US stocks gain on Fed

US stocks have faced big hurdles during the week, but emerged stronger following a favourable Federal Reserve decision, a rejection of Scottish independence and a record stock offering from Chinese company Alibaba. The gains were strongest for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which closed the week at record levels after tacking on 292.23 points (1.72 per cent) to 17,279.74. The broad-based SP 500 gained 24.86 (1.25 per cent) to 2,010.40, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 12.19 (0.27 per cent) to 4,579.79. Trade was muted during the first part of the week as the market held its breath ahead of an unusual convergence of big market-moving events. In the end, all three events went about as favourably as possible for US stocks, further lifting the bull market. 'It looks like the stars came into alignment this week,' said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank. The news also 'drowned out' some unfavourable economic data, such as weak US inflation figures and a poor industrial production results for August, Ablin added, according to skynews.com