Stocks fell on Wednesday after the top-ranking Federal Reserve official hinted that lower rates may not be in the cards.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 162.77 points at 26,430.14, while the pulled back 0.8% to 2,923.73 after hitting an all-time high. The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.6% to 8,049.64. The S&P 500 also posted its worst day since March 22.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said in a news conference that recently low inflationary pressures may only be "transitory," dashing speculation the central bank was at least entertaining the idea of a rate cut because of tame inflation.

"The market was pricing in this rate cut. They want a rate cut and this was basically Powell saying, 'sorry but we're not,'" said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at the Bleakley Advisory Group.

Treasury yields rebounded on Powell's comment. The 2-year yield went from a session low of around 2.2% to trade back at 2.27%.

Powell's comment and the move in Treasurys came after the Fed voted unanimously to maintain the benchmark rate in a range of 2.25% and 2.5%. On inflation, the central bank said it remained low.

The Fed's statement came after data released earlier this week showed the core personal consumption expenditure price index remained unchanged in March and was up 1.6% year over year. That's below the Fed's 2% target. President Donald Trump urged the Fed to cut rates by 1 percentage point this week because of low inflation.

Stocks rose broadly earlier in the day following positive news on trade. CNBC reported on Wednesday, citing sources, that a U.S.-China trade deal could be announced by next Friday. Strong earnings from companies like of Apple's quarterly results and strong jobs data for April boosted sentiment as well.

Apple shares rose 4.9% after its earnings and revenue for the previous quarter beat expectations. The tech giant's guidance for the next quarter was also better than expected.