Investing.com - Wall Street was slightly higher after the morning bell, as technology stocks surged and the Federal Reserve ends its two-day policy meeting.
The S&P 500 rose 3 points, or 0.12%, to 2,819.72 as of 9:41 AM ET (13:41 GMT), while the Dow increased 14 points, or 0.06%, to 25,430.04 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 26 points, or 0.34% to 7,698.24.
The Fed is expected to keep rates unchanged at its policy meeting on Wednesday, with a decision and statement released at 2:00 PM ET (18:00 GMT). Economic growth has left the central bank likely to raise interest rates twice this year, with investors expecting the Fed to raise rates in September.
Trade uncertainty continued to weigh on investors' minds after conflicting reports. A Bloomberg article on Tuesday said the U.S. and China are seeking to resume trade talks, while a separate report said that the White House plans to propose a 25% tariff instead of 10% on $200 billion of imported Chinese goods.
Technology stocks were higher after the opening bell, as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose 4.20% after reporting higher-than-expected earnings results. Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) was down 1.28% amid reports that it plans to invest $5 billion in a factory in China. The luxury car maker is expected to report earnings after the bell.
Meanwhile, Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) rose 0.67%, while Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) increased 1.33% and Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) rose 2.11% after Third Point bought a 2.5% stake in the company.
Elsewhere, Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) fell 1.66%, while General Electric (NYSE:GE) lost 1.86%.
In Europe, stocks were down. Germany’s DAX fell 62 points, or 0.49%, while in France the CAC 40 decreased 3 points, or 0.07%, and in London, the FTSE 100 was down 78 points, or 1.02%. Meanwhile, the pan-European Euro Stoxx 50 lost 17 points, or 0.49%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 slumped 72 points, or 0.74%.
In commodities, gold futures fell 0.47% to $1,218.00 a troy ounce, while crude oil futures decreased 1.43% to $67.78 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, rallied 0.07% to 94.40.