Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened moderately lower on Wednesday, as investors remained cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's monthly policy statement, due later in the trading session.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.07% lower, the S&P 500 slipped 0.10%, while the Nasdaq Composite index fell 0.25%.
The Fed was widely expected to announce a third reduction in the monthly pace of its bond purchases from $65 billion to $55 billion at the conclusion of its monthly meeting later Wednesday, the first with Janet Yellen at the helm. The central bank was also expected to confirm that recent softness in U.S. economic reports was due to severe winter weather.
Data released on Tuesday indicated that the economic recovery in the U.S. remains sluggish. The annual rate of inflation slowed to 1.1% in February from 1.6% in January. A separate report showed that building permits rose more than expected last month following a steep drop in January, but housing starts slipped.
Adobe Systems Inc. retreated 0.93% after the company said it added online subscribers at a faster-than-projected rythm in the fiscal first quarter.
Also in the tech sector, Oracle Corp. plunged 3.74% after the software maker said late Tuesday that fiscal third-quarter sales and profit were below analysts’ estimates.
FedEx posted quarterly results that were below expectations, citing the severe winter weather. However, shares still climbed 0.51% at the open of the U.S. trading session.
Among financial stocks, JPMorgan slipped 0.22% after agreeing to sell its physical commodities business to Swiss trade house Mercuria for approximately $3.5 billion. The U.S. lender added that it sees no material impact on earnings as a result of the deal.
Elsewhere, General Motors edged up 0.09% after Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra apologized for the lives lost in accidents linked to an ignition defect and pledged an aggressive probe into why a recall took so long.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included Guess, ExOne and Vera Bradley, scheduled to report quarterly earnings later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed to higher. The EURO STOXX 50 added 0.23%, France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.09%, Germany's DAX gained 0.43%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.24%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index eased 0.07%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.36%.