Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wednesday, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's highly anticipated policy statement later in the day.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.23% increase, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.21% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.18% gain.
Investors remained wary ahead of the outcome of the Fed’s final policy meeting of the year, with some expecting the bank to announce a small reduction in the pace of its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
However, many believe that the bank will wait until early next year to start rolling back stimulus, despite recent indications the U.S. economic recovery is deepening.
Kraft Foods Group was likely to be in focus, as the packaged-foods company authorized a USD3 billion stock repurchase program. The buyback plan is the company’s first since it became independent in October 2012.
American Airlines was also expected to be active, following reports Cantor Fitzgerald LP will receive USD135 million from the airline company to drop its lawsuit in which the carrier is accused of failing to stop the hijacking of the plane that crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, killing 658 of the firm’s employees.
The settlement came four days after American Airline's parent, AMR Corp., completed a merger with US Airways Group to form American Airlines Group Inc.
Among earnings, Jabil Circuit, a provider of electronic-manufacturing services, said late Tuesday that its fiscal first-quarter profit came in below expectations. The company also said it would sell its aftermarket-services business for USD725 million.
The company's shares dove 13.79% in pre-market trade.
Elsewhere, Hewlett-Packard reportedly raised the annual salary of Chief Executive Officer Meg Whitman to USD1.5 million from USD1.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included FedEx, General Mills and Lennar, scheduled to release quarterly earnings later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 gained 0.77%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.68%, Germany's DAX jumped 0.96%, while Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.32%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.32%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged 2.02%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on building permits and housing starts.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.23% increase, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.21% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.18% gain.
Investors remained wary ahead of the outcome of the Fed’s final policy meeting of the year, with some expecting the bank to announce a small reduction in the pace of its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
However, many believe that the bank will wait until early next year to start rolling back stimulus, despite recent indications the U.S. economic recovery is deepening.
Kraft Foods Group was likely to be in focus, as the packaged-foods company authorized a USD3 billion stock repurchase program. The buyback plan is the company’s first since it became independent in October 2012.
American Airlines was also expected to be active, following reports Cantor Fitzgerald LP will receive USD135 million from the airline company to drop its lawsuit in which the carrier is accused of failing to stop the hijacking of the plane that crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, killing 658 of the firm’s employees.
The settlement came four days after American Airline's parent, AMR Corp., completed a merger with US Airways Group to form American Airlines Group Inc.
Among earnings, Jabil Circuit, a provider of electronic-manufacturing services, said late Tuesday that its fiscal first-quarter profit came in below expectations. The company also said it would sell its aftermarket-services business for USD725 million.
The company's shares dove 13.79% in pre-market trade.
Elsewhere, Hewlett-Packard reportedly raised the annual salary of Chief Executive Officer Meg Whitman to USD1.5 million from USD1.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included FedEx, General Mills and Lennar, scheduled to release quarterly earnings later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 gained 0.77%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.68%, Germany's DAX jumped 0.96%, while Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.32%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.32%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged 2.02%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on building permits and housing starts.