GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks hit fresh record high, US yields rise after Fed rate cut

By Chibuike Oguh

NEW YORK, Sept 17 (Reuters) - World stocks hit a record high in choppy trading with equities Wall Street ending mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve delivered a widely expected interest rate cut and signaled the start of a monetary policy easing cycle.

The Fed cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point and indicated it will steadily lower borrowing costs for the rest of this year. Only new Governor Stephen Miran, who joined the Fed on Tuesday and is on leave as head of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers, dissented in favor of a half-percentage-point cut.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished slightly lower while the Dow rose. The Dow Industrial Average .DJI rose 0.57% to 46,018.32, the S&P 500 .SPX fell 0.10% to 6,600.35 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC fell 0.32% to 22,261.33.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS was last down 0.10% to 975.84, after rising to a record high of 979.61. The pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX index had ended down 0.03%.

"The market’s reaction so far has been to sell on this news, which isn’t that surprising; what does surprise me is that the markets were as bullish going into this as they were," said Mark Malek, chief investment officer at SiebertNXT in New York. "I’m expecting more of a negative knee-jerk reaction, because there was a lot of excitement and a bit too much exuberance came in too soon."

After the cut, Treasury yields initially erased gains and turned lower on the session before reversing course as Powell spoke.

The benchmark U.S. 10-year note yield US10YT=RR rose 4.6 basis points to 4.072%. The 2-year note US2YT=RR yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Fed, rose 3.9 basis points to 3.51%. The 30-year bond US30YT=RR yield rose 2.4 basis points to 4.669%.

“I would say this is a mildly bullish report, as it shows that the Fed no longer has the hawkish bias it had earlier in the year. In the commentary, unemployment seems as much of a worry now as inflation,” said Chris Grisanti, chief market strategist at MAI Capital Management in New York.

“The Fed lowered rates by 25 basis points – no surprise there – but the bigger news here is the huge dispersion in the ‘dot plot’ estimates as to where rates will be a year and two years from now," Grisanti added.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in his subsequent press briefing that some of the more dire inflationary scenarios facing the economy have faded, adding that tariffs may be pushing up prices but it increasingly looks like it will be "a one-time price increase.”

The U.S. dollar strengthened against major peers after the Fed's announcement and as Powell spoke to the press. The dollar strengthened 0.27% to 146.87 against the Japanese yen JPY=EBS and was up 0.36% to 0.788 against the Swiss franc CHF=EBS.

The euro fell 0.38% to $1.1822 against the dollar EBS=EBS. The dollar index =USD rose 0.35% to 96.96.

Gold prices hit a fresh record high after the Fed's decision. Spot gold XAU= was last down 0.82% to $3,659.10 an ounce after reaching a new peak of $3,707.40. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for December delivery settled 0.2% lower at $3,717.80.

Oil prices eased after data showing an increase in U.S. diesel stockpiles stoked worries about demand. Brent crude futures LCOc1 settled down 0.76% to $68.22 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 lost 0.73% to settle at $64.05.