Can The Fed End The Market Tailspins?

updated at 5 p.m. edt

The Dow gained 429 points in a late rally today after the Fed left interest rates unchanged on day that saw a bumpy roller-coaster ride with more than 700-point swing before it was all over.

After the nose-dive yesterday it all spelled a market and economy chocked with volatility. The Dow closed up by 4% at 11,239.77.

The S&P 500 jumped 53 points in positive territory for a 4.7% gainmm to finish at 1,172.53. The Nasdaq was up 124, or 5.3 percent, to closer at 2,482.52


Updated at 2:45 p.m. edt

The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged today, but there were clearly jitters on Wall Street when the monetary policy-setting board warned of increased economic risks.

The New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ went south on the news after posting gains for most of the day, but then rebounded. The roller-coaster ride was an indication of market volatility amid economic uncertainty.

"The (Federal Open Market) Committee now expects a somewhat slower pace of recovery over coming quarters than it did at the time of the previous meeting and anticipates that the unemployment rate will decline only gradually toward levels that the Committee judges to be consistent with its dual mandate," the Fed's statement said.

"Moreover, downside risks to the economic outlook have increased," the statement added.

The Fed also said it would keep interests rates low "at least through mid-2013."

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The Federal Reserve is meeting this afternoon in Washington amid the global markets tanking, but it is unclear whether there is anything that the monetary policy-setting board can do to stop the market madness.

After Wall Street had a mini-crash yesterday there was plenty of volatility overnight in the Asian markets, which mostly saw another big dip, and the European markets are again on a roller-coaster ride of there own.

Add in that the Dow Futures are on a wild up-and-down swing of their and it all spells another shaky day for Wall Street investors.

The Fed will deliver its interest-rate decision at 2:15 p.m. edt, and banks and investors are wonder whether there will be any hint of a third round of quantitative easing, known as QE3 -- a sort of stimulus program in which the central banks buy up stocks and other paper to try to stabilize the markets.