Stocks close with losses as Fed ends stimulus

Stock indexes closed with losses Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said it was shutting down a bond-buying program because the economy no longer needs as much help.

At the close on Wall Street, The Dow Jones industrial average was down 31.44 points, or 0.18 percent, to 16,974.31. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 2.75 points, or 0.14 percent, to 1,982.30, and the Nasdaq composite fell 15.07 points, or 0.33 percent, to 4,549.23.

Gold and bond prices fell and the dollar jumped against other major currencies Wednesday as investors anticipated higher interest rates.

Facebook slumped 6 percent after its chief financial officer said the social networking giant's expenses could rise sharply next year as it ramps up spending.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.32 percent.