Wall Street little changed ahead of FOMC

2013-09-18 12:21:11

(MENAFN– ecpulse)

Stock markets were little changed at the opening, with the S&P 500 index near all-time high as investors awaited the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s meeting.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.16% to 15505.02 points. The S&P 500 index gained 0.02% to 1705.04 points. The NASDAQ composite gained 0.04% to 3747.24 points. As of 10:01 a.m. ET

The global eye turns into the U.S. Federal Reserve today as the central bank is expected to begin winding down its program of asset purchases that has been deployed to boost the U.S. economy and markets.

The central bank is scheduled to release a statement at 2 p.m. ET following the conclusion of its latest policy-making meeting. Fed chair Ben Bernanke will then hold a press conference at 2:30 p.m. to discuss the Fed`s latest assessment of the economy and its plans for the future.

Many experts are forecasting the Fed will make a small cut to its asset purchases this month as the economy has been improving and unemployment falling. Others expect the tapering to start later.

Markets do not only await the outcome of the meeting, but also the statement language and the accompanying press conference.

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