U.S. stocks closed sharply lower Wednesday with investors disappointed that the Federal Reserve cut interest rates in order to cushion the economy from the effects of President Trump’s trade war with China, but refrained from suggesting further rate cuts were on the way.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.33% sank to a triple-digit loss, its biggest one day fall since May 31.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.33% closed down 334 points, or 1.2%, at 26,864 while the S&P 500 SPX, +1.59% shed 32 points, or 1.1% to 2,980. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite COMP, +2.26% lost 98 points, or 1.2% to 8,175.

On Tuesday, the Dow closed down 23.33 points, or 0.1%, at 27,198.02, while the S&P 500 index fell 7.79 points, or 0.3%, to 3,013.18 and the Nasdaq Composite Index retreated 19.71 points to 8,273.61, a slump of 0.2%.

On the last day of July, the Dow Jones index is up 15% for the year-to-date, the S&P 500 index up 18% and the Nasdaq up 23%.

What’s driving the market?

Investors were widely expecting a 0.25% cut in the federal funds rate but some were disappointed the Fed didn’t lower interest rates by more than a quarter point, or clearly signal that further rate cuts were on the way.

At his press conference, Fed chair Jerome Powell added that “the Fed has moved to a somewhat more accommodative stance” as part of a “mid-cycle adjustment” as “trade tensions seem to be having a significant effect on the economy” and the “global manufacturing slowdown is a bigger factor than expected last year”.

But Powell’s comment that Wednesday’s rate cut was part of a mid-cycle adjustment and not necessarily the start of a monetary easing cycle disappointed investors who had priced in further rate cuts later this year.

“The FOMC statement does not suggest a Committee committed to additional cuts,” UBS economist, Seth Carpenter said. “On balance, the Fed has stood down from high alert.”

With U.S. unemployment still at a fifty year low and inflation subdued, the Fed focused on the potential threats to the record eleven year economic expansion posed by President Trump’s trade policies and the resulting slowdown in global economic growth.

“I think the biggest surprise here is what is not being said: There is nothing in the statement about growth cooling here at home, and there is not a whole lot to suggest another rate cut is coming down the pike,” said Mike Loewengart, vice president of investment strategy at E*Trade.

“The threat of a recession has historically been the main catalyst for monetary easing, but today we’re seeing a Fed hanging its hat solely on inflation and the global economy. So those two factors will be closely watched by all for the balance of the summer.”

Overnight U.S. and Chinese delegates, including Trade Secretary Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, concluded the first round of talks since the G-20 gathering in May without any substantive developments on the tariff front, according to reports.

Meanwhile, second quarter corporate earnings reports remained mixed. Apple AAPL, +3.75% shares traded at the highest level in nine months Wednesday after the technology giant shrugged off a slide in iPhone sales and reported better-than-expected second quarter earnings and a robust outlook into the final months of its financial year, though analysts noted a large share buyback program is helping to support its valuation.

But General Electric GE, +0.99% slipped despite beating earnings estimates and raising its full year outlook.

Nearly 60% of S&P 500 companies have reported earnings for the second quarter so far and 76% have posted stronger-than-forecast quarterly profits, according to FactSet.

As Goldman Sachs noted, for the first time since the financial crisis, corporate buybacks are exceeding free cash flow. Total buybacks among all companies this year were up 26% through mid-July.

Read: Here’s how the stock market tends to perform when the Fed cuts rates

As for U.S. economic data, an estimate of private-sector job growth from payroll firm ADP and Moody’s Analytics showed 156,000 new jobs added in July, roughly in line with the 155,000 predicted by economists, according to Econoday. The U.S. Labor Department reports its July payrolls and unemployment data on Friday.

Read:Trump says he wants more than ‘small’ Fed rate cut

Which stocks are in focus?

Apple Inc. AAPL, +3.75% stock rose after the iPhone maker and Dow component late Tuesday reported better-than-expected second-quarter revenue growth. The slowdown in iPhone unit sales in the past couple of years has restrained Apple’s overall growth since its fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2015, but its large share buyback program has helped to maintain EPS growth and its shares have nearly doubled in the past three years.

Shares of General Electric Co. GE, +0.99% slipped after the industrial conglomerate reported a second-quarter adjusted profit and revenue that topped expectations and raised its full-year outlook. GE said its loss was pegged at 1 penny per share, or 3 cents per share when looking at continuing operations. On an adjusted basis, however, GE earned 17 per share, a figure that compares to last year’s 8 cent profit. Revenues fell 4.3% from last year to $28.8 billion.

Shares of Micro Devices Inc. AMD, +2.94% fell after it projected weaker-than-expected revenue growth for its current quarter late Tuesday.

Shares of Humana Inc. HUM, +3.57% rose after the health-care company reported second-quarter profit and revenue that rose above expectations, and provided an upbeat full-year guidance.

Check out: Here’s how the Fed could rattle the market instead of calm it down

How did other markets trade?

Short-dated Treasury yields that are sensitive to monetary policy expectations rose after Fed Chair Powell characterized his 25 basis point rate cut as a mid-cycle policy adjustment. The 2-year Treasury note yield TMUBMUSD02Y, 0.136% rose 6.2 basis points to 1.910%. But 10-year yields ended lower TMUBMUSD10Y, 0.657% around 2.02% after the Fed’s decision.

See:How the Fed could throw a nasty curveball at bond-market bulls with a ‘hawkish cut’

Gold futures finished with a loss on Wednesday, then extended their decline after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut key interest rates by a quarter point, as expected. Gold prices US:GCZ19 had settled down $4, or 0.3%, at $1,437.80 on Comex, ahead of the Fed news.

Oil futures finished higher on Wednesday, with U.S. prices up a fifth consecutive session as government data showed that domestic crude inventories dropped for a seventh week in a row, the longest stretch of declines in a year and a half. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery US:CLU19 on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 53 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $58.58 a barrel, for a fifth straight session rise. For the month, U.S. benchmark prices ended about 0.2% higher, according to Dow Jones Market Data. That was their sixth monthly rise of the year.

Read:Oil bulls look to Fed rate cut to overcome demand worries

Also see:History suggests gold vulnerable to ‘sell-the-fact’ reaction if Fed delivers rate cut

The U.S. dollar index DXY, +0.23% ended higher at 98.66, its highest levels since May.

Check out:Markets are warning that ‘monetary policy will not work,’ says BofA Merrill Lynch