Major stock markets in the United States closed mostly higher on Wednesday after the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes revealed that the decision to keep the interest rate unchanged was unanimous. Investors also digested the report by the US Census Bureau, which showed that housing starts in the country declined by 9.8% in January. Meanwhile, mortgage applications in the US decreased by 6.6%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.16% at the closing bell, with Merck and Co. climbing by 2.74%, while the Nasdaq 100 was flat. At the same time, the S&P 500 grew by 0.24%, as Garmin soared by 12.64% at the close.

The euro lost 0.22% against the dollar and sold for $1.04251 at 3:59 pm ET.