Stocks were able to break out of their rut today, rising after the Federal Reserve's somewhat surprising decision to hike interest rates by 75 basis points, the sharpest rise since 1994. Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted in his press conference that a similar hike could be coming in July, and reiterated the central bank's aggressive commitment to curbing inflation.

The Dow added 303 points for its first win in six sessions. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also snapped five-day losing streaks, with Big Tech staging a bounce as Treasury yields cooled. Meanwhile, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) had its worst day since May 3.

The Dow Jones Average (DJI -30,668.53) added 303.7 points, or 1%, for the day. Boeing (BA) led the gainers, adding 9.5%. Chevron (CVX), meanwhile, paced the laggards with a 2% drop.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,789.99) rose 54.5 points, or 1.5% for the day. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 11,099.15 ) gained 270.8 points, or 2.5% for the session.

Lastly, the Cboe Market Volatility Index (VIX - 29.62) shed 3.1 points or 9.4% for the day.

RATE HIKE, RISING SUPPLIES WEIGH ON OIL

Oil prices settled lower on Wednesday, after the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said U.S. crude inventories rose for a second consecutive week. Also weighing on black gold was the Fed's aggressive interest rate hike. July-dated crude shed $3.62, or 3%, to settle at $115.31 per barrel.

Meanwhile, gold prices settled higher, despite struggling for direction most of the day. The Fed decision is already weighing on the precious metal in electronic trading. Still, August-dated added $6.10, or 0.3%, to close at $1,819.60 an ounce.