State index ekes out an increase of 0.14

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, rose 0.14 to 354.42 Wednesday.

“Equities closed modestly higher with the telecommunications sector outperforming as Federal Reserve officials left interest rates unchanged and signaled the possibility of an upcoming balance sheet reduction,” said Leon Lants, managing director at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock.

Total volume for the index was 21.4 million shares.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.